Malaysian democracy booms after decades of coldness: Australia
MALAYSIA: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd yesterday
praised Malaysia’s revitalized democracy, as the two countries
celebrated their warming ties by announcing a plan to jointly train
teachers from Afghanistan.
Rudd, on his first visit to Malaysia since taking office, said
Malaysia’s democracy has been “tested and applied” in March 8 elections
in which the opposition made unprecedented gains, loosening the ruling
coalition’s 51-year hold on power.
“Democracy is not just alive and well in Malaysia but flourishing,”
Rudd told reporters at a joint news conference with his counterpart,
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
Malaysia has had an uneasy relationship with Australia, evident in
the frequent verbal sniping between previous prime ministers of the two
countries - Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad and Australia’s Paul Keating and
John Howard.
Ties have improved since 2003 when Abdullah replaced Mahathir, who
was incensed when Keating once called him “recalcitrant.” Howard also
had frequently criticized Malaysia’s human rights record. Rudd, a former
diplomat with expertise in Asia, has maintained a much softer line.
As part of their improving ties, the two prime ministers announced
that Afghan teachers will be trained in Malaysia with the help of the
Australian government and universities.
Rudd, who is stopping in Malaysia for one day on his way back from
Japan, said part of the reason the agreement was forged is that Malaysia
is a Muslim country that “can comfortably partner with the education
needs of Afghanistan.”
“This points to a new phase in the relationship between Australia and
Malaysia,” he said. “Security is one part of Afghanistan’s future and it
is core, but development and education are equally important.”
No details of the agreement were released. “We agreed to pool our
resources,” Abdullah said. “This ... will usher in a new chapter of
cooperation between Malaysia and Australia.”
Rudd is avoiding meeting with opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim who has
threatened to bring down Abdullah’s government with parliamentary
defections even as he faces a sodomy accusation.
Anwar has dismissed the accusation as a politically motivated attempt
to stymie his challenge to the government.
A respected news portal, Malaysiakini, reported Thursday that Anwar’s
three-party coalition will soon try to bring a no-confidence motion
against Abdullah’s government.
But it added that the motion is unlikely to see the light of the day
because the speaker can easily reject it.
Putrajaya, Thursday, AP |