Word: mahathir
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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RESIGNED. MAHATHIR MOHAMAD, 77, autocratic Malaysian Prime Minister; as expected, after a 22-year tenure during which he spearheaded the largely Muslim nation's rapid transformation from a tin-and rubber-producing backwater to a high-tech exporter but also diminished the judiciary, censored the media and intimidated the opposition. He promoted a moderate brand of Islam, but his last days in office were overshadowed by his statements disparaging Jews...
...Malaysian Farewell Your account of the mixed legacy of Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad as he steps down after 22 years in power was an informative report on the country's changes under his leadership [Oct. 20]. Despite all the criticisms leveled against him, it is undeniable that Mahathir truly put Malaysia on the world map. I can still remember when my parents, while traveling abroad, would have had a hard time explaining that Malaysia was located north of Singapore and south of Thailand. Those days are over. Despite Mahathir's sometimes controversial remarks about certain ethnic groups...
...Mahathir should be praised for leading a once backward nation toward first-world standards of living. He also made the developing world proud when he stood up to international financial institutions and imposed capital controls. Further, his unflinching criticism of the U.S.'s unilateral and pre-emptive policy vis-?-vis "rogue states" should stand as a warning to sycophantic countries. Still, despite Malaysia's success, one has to wonder if it might have been possible for Mahathir to achieve all that he did without resorting to strong-arm tactics, like jailing his political rival Anwar Ibrahim. If development could...
Boykin's mistake was to put all these pieces together, implying that Islam itself is not merely mistaken but evil. Talking like this while in a U.S. military uniform was also pretty tactless. Mahathir's mistake, by contrast, was to open his trap...
...SWORN IN. ABDULLAH AHMAD BADAWI, 63, as Malaysia's fifth prime minister; by King Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra; at the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur. The Mr. Nice Guy of Malaysian politics, Abdullah succeeds combative predecessor Mahathir Mohamad, 77, who retired after 22 years at the country's helm. Abdullah fell out with Mahathir in 1988 when he joined a group that unsuccessfully challenged the Prime Minister's leadership of the ruling party. In 1991 the rift was healed when Mahathir named him Foreign Minister...