How will Malaysia deal with rising public anger?

Protesters defy police ban to demand the resignation of prime minister embroiled in corruption scandal.

Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia is "controlled by thieves". 

The former prime minister is accusing his latest successor of stealing public money - lots of it.

So do thousands of protesters.

They defied a police ban in the capital Kuala Lumpur to demand the resignation of Najib Razak.

The prime minister denies stealing money pumped into a multi-billion dollar government investment fund by foreign investors.

The long-running corruption scandal has given rise to a campaign to clean-up government.

The political reform campaign is called Bersih – the Malay word for clean.

Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad joining these protests is rather hypocritical given his time in office.  He jailed his opponents and tightly controlled the  media.  

Anwar Ibrahim is a former assistant Prime Minister under Mahathir Mohamad who famously had a falling out with his mentor.   Mr. Ibrahim has been tried and convicted over several trials of sodimy even though there was clear evidence showing just the opposite.  Further Malayasia is a one party state controlled since independence by the United Malays National Organization.   

Random Sunday Night Thoughts

Recently an article was published in Foreign Policy at Japan suggesting that its polity needs to embrace democratic values.  What the author was on about, is that the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has governed Japan for most of its post war history.  True, except for a brief four year period from 2008 to 2012 when the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) controlled government.   Yes, Japan is practically a one party state.  However it isn't the only country holding open elections to hold this distinction.   Singapore has been ruled by the People's Action  Party (PAP) since independence, Malaysia has been governed by United Malay Organization (UMO) also since gaining independence. In the post war era Germany has been ruled for a majority of that time by the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)  except when Helmut Schmidt of the Social Party Democratic (SPD) was elected chancellor.      


As everyone on the planet has noticed and notices every four years American political campaigns last for ever, or is that they just never stop.  Like any political process money plays a part in gaining elected office in America yet there were some controls until Citizens United vs. FEC.  In that case the United States Supreme Court that money, being speech couldn't be restricted to certain amounts under rules adopted by the Federal Elections Commission.  Not that the wealthy haven't tried to buy elections for years in America this ruling gave them carte blanche to purchase a government. Ever since the Koch brothers have been at the forefront of a small group of wealthy individuals hell bent on buying themselves a government.  


On Friday North Korean Foreign Ri Su-yong suggested in an interview with the Associated Press that his government would cease nuclear arms testing if South Korea and the U.S. halted their annual war games.  Since the 1990's when it was first discovered that the North was developing the technology for nuclear weapons several attempts have been made through diplomatic negotiations to halt North Korea's weapons program.   President Clinton tried the Agreed Framework under which for discontinuing its weapons program a nuclear power plant for producing electricity would be built. Even though an accord was reached the program ultimately failed after it was discovered that North Korea had continued researching the technology for producing nuclear weapons.  The Six Party Talks followed the Agreed Framework involving Russia, China, South Korea, North Korea, Japan and the U.S.  These talks failed for the reasons as the Agreed Framework when again North Korea was discovered to be violating the agreement.


  

In Maylasia One Party Rule Means Censorship

Since independence Maylasia has been a single party state. Yes, they have elections but the United Mayla National Organization (UMO) has always been the governing party.  Given its powerful status the UMO has always dealt harshly with its critics. Using the courts to insure its detractors are imprisoned for violating draconian national security laws and the Sedition Act which came into force towards the end of Britian's coloinal rule in 1948.

Zunar can only publish his work online because no newspaper in his country will dare to publish his work

 Less than a year after the Charlie Hebdo murders led to worldwide protests for freedom of expression, a cartoonist in Malaysia is facing a possible 43 years in prison after being accused of “sedition”.Zulkiflee Sm Anwar Ulhaque, who draws under the name Zunar, has arrived in Britain to highlight his trial next month, in which he faces nine charges under a Sedition Act introduced to Malaysia by the colonial British government in 1948.
Zunar has angered the Malaysian authorities with cartoons suggesting that the judiciary is controlled by the government and that the country is run not by Prime Minister Najib Razak but by his wife Rosmah Mansor.
Cartoonists and other supporters will join him in a protest on Sunday that begins at Speakers’ Corner in London’s Hyde Park.

Zunar is will go on trial not for his polictial cartoons but for a group of tweets which critized the Maylasian government. He isn't the only person or group to run afoul of the ruling party.

Revealing details of little-known cases, Human Rights Watch said the summit will present an opportunity for world leaders to press Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to reform draconian laws and end censorship.
Mr Najib, fighting for his political life over an alleged corruption scandal, promised to "uphold civil liberties" and "regard for the fundamental rights of the people" when he took office in 2009.
But Human Rights Watch said repression intensified after Mr Najib's long-ruling coalition lost the popular vote but managed to retain power because of a gerrymandered voting system in elections in 2013.
The organisation said the government's use of the criminal code to silence peaceful expression violates international legal standards.