“The stability and prosperity of our region,”
Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad claimed earlier this week, “rely heavily on
a united and integrated ASEAN.” The call for regional unity came as Malaysia’s
prime minister was conferred an honorary doctorate in Thailand in the field of
social leadership, entrepreneurship and politics, an occasion that marked
Mahathir’s second visit to the country since winning a landmark election in May
this year. His earlier visit saw him pledge to facilitate peace in the southern
border provinces of Thailand amid a persistent separatist insurgency.
While his speech may have been stirring, Mahathir’s grandiose vision of
a more unified ASEAN community does not extend to his own government’s
policies, at least judging by the escalating border dispute Putrajaya has
ignited in recent weeks with neighbouring Singapore. The same Mahathir that
called for regional unity in Thailand is refusing to remove ships from disputed
waters, while a senior member of his party threatened Singapore with “pain by a
thousand cuts”. The provocative language harkens back to the long and tense
relationship between the two countries since their 1965 split, with boundary
issues typically flaring up in parallel with domestic politics.
This latest dispute straddles two sets of issues. On the maritime side,
Malaysia’s October claim to extended limits of the Johor Bahru port has been
rejected by Singapore on the grounds that the new boundaries exceed previous
claims. In terms of airspace, Malaysia has voiced opposition to the Instrument
Landing System (ILS), an assisted navigational aviation facility for Seletar
Airport. Malaysia protests the system’s implementation on the grounds that it
infringes on national sovereignty and creates adverse impacts on flight paths
and shipping in Pasir Gudang.
Mahathir’s renewed aggression toward Singapore marks a notable
about-face from predecessor NajibRazak’s efforts to build stronger ties between
Malaysia and the city-state. Najib sought to increase mutual trust through
cross-border infrastructure and education projects. “We certainly do not want
to return to the era of confrontational diplomacy and barbed rhetoric between
our two countries,” he declared earlier this year in a barely-veiled barb at
Mahathir’s preceding stint in office. “It was an era that we want to forget.”
That attitude was echoed by international observers, who held high hopes
for bilateral relations upon Mahathir’s election as PM in May despite his
widely-known frosty attitude towards Singapore. A few months in, those hopes
have given way to somber disillusionment. The tensions of the past several
weeks have revived uncomfortable memories of cross-causeway relations during
Mahathir’s first stint in power, when he ruled Malaysia with an iron fist from
1981 to 2003.
One focal point of tensions is Mahathir’s so-called 2001 “crooked
bridge” plan, designed to replace the causeway linking the two countries with a
bridge to allow ships to cross the Johor Strait. Singapore refused to back the project,
declaring the bridge unnecessary as long as the causeway was in good condition.
Mahathir’s insistence on building Malaysia’s end of the bridge, and more recent
attempts to revive project discussions, have confirmed fears that his return to
power would revive old issues previously laid to rest.
It’s difficult to determine exactly why Mahathir is so blatantly after
confrontation with Singapore. Two main theories have emerged to explain the
PM’s enmity towards Malaysia’s tiny neighbour. According to the first theory,
the idiosyncratic Mahathir holds a grudge from his university days in
Singapore, where he faced anti-Malay prejudice and condescension from
Singaporeans.
Mahathir does indeed have a history of holding grudges. Long before the
Seletar airport issue and the revival of the Johor Strait bridge project,
Mahathir had one-time protégé Anwar Ibrahim thrown in jail on trumped up sodomy
charges after they disagreed over financial policy in the wake of the 1997
Asian Financial Crisis. Anwar, who has since re-emerged as a critical political
ally for Mahathir, was just one of a long list of political opponents to suffer
similar fates during Mahathir’s first tenure.
That trend has carried over into the premier’s second term. Having
already spoken at length of his soured impression of successor Abdullah Badawi,
the newly reinstated leader is now going after predecessor Najib. Arrested in
July in connection with the billion-dollar corruption scandal surrounding state
investment fund 1MDB, Malaysia has also filed criminal charges against Goldman
Sachs for its involvement in the embezzlement of large sums of money. The
unfolding case against Najib is being held up as a litmus test of Mahathir’s
commitment to justice. The supposedly “bitter” Mahathir is unlikely to
disappoint.
The second theory, however, may offer a more straightforward
explanation. It suggests Mahathir is using this latest spat with Singapore as a
means of drawing attention away from domestic problems. A Nikkei Asian Review
report released earlier this year held Mahathir’s government responsible for a
rapidly declining ringgit, with the new administration lacking in substantial
new economic policies and failing to curb capital outflow.
Mahathir’s economic woes are compounded by rising concerns over
Malaysia’s ballooning debt. In the wake of the 1MDB scandal, realizations that
government debt exceeds RM1 trillion – more than $238 billion – are ringing
national alarm bells. The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite
Index has fallen nearly ten percent since Mahathir took office.
Amid rising debt, dubious economic policies, and broken election
promises, Mahathir’s comments in Thailand earlier this week belied what could
very well be a conscious strategy of exploiting regional tensions to maintain
domestic control. While ASEAN unity almost certainly is the only path to shared
regional prosperity, Mahathir does not seem to be to be listening to his own
advice.
Source: This article was published by Modern Diplomacy
By Eliza King
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