The evolution of a reformist: Who is Anwar Ibrahim?

Anwar Ibrahim seems to be very close to the prime ministership after many hardships he has been through.

Listed as one of the "100 most influential people in the world" by TIME magazine, Anwar Ibrahim is known for his painful political life and reform movements. A number of concepts form the basis of these movements: kinship protection, nepotism, opportunism, and partisanship. He wants to get rid of these concepts like pus in a healthy body.

The first opposition leader to risk the power of the National Front coalition, which has been in power in Malaysia since 1957, was Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar Ibrahim was born in 1947 in the Penang region of the Malay Union. His father, who started his career as a hospital attendant in Penang, was a member of the United Malay National Organization (UMNO) parliament in the Seberang Perai Central Parliament from 1959 to 1969 and served as the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Health from 1964 to 1969 until his retirement. by Ibrahim Abdul Rahman. His mother is Che Yan Hussein, who was a housewife and later became active in politics on the UMNO base. Anwar Ibrahim who completed his education life in Penang, where he was born, from primary school to high school, started to climb the stairs to leadership by studying Malay Studies at the University of Malaya, where he went for university education.

Anwar Ibrahim, who entered university life very actively, was first elected president of the Malay Language Community of the University of Malaya. This is followed by the presidency of the 'Malaysia Youth Council'. After a while, he became the co-founder and, for a while, the chairman of ABIM, the Malaysian Muslim Youth Movement, which was founded by Ustaz Abdul Wahab Zakaria. Anwar Ibrahim, who lives at the height of his activism, is among the troubles he has acquired in the fight against rural poverty. Courts and handcuffs are not uncommon. In 1974, he was arrested for participating in a student protest and sentenced to two years in prison. Between 1975 and 1982, he was elected to the World Muslim Youth Assembly known as "WAMY" to represent the entire Asia Pacific region. In 1981, he became the co-founder of the International Institute of Islamic Thought in the USA. Between 1983 and 1988, he was the president of the International Islamic University.

Anwar Ibrahim, who was discovered and noticed by Mahathir Muhammed for his potential and active work, was invited to UMNO by Prime Minister Mahathir in 1982. Responding to the invitation, Anwar Ibrahim began climbing the political ladder as Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports in 1983, as Minister of Agriculture in 1984, and as Minister of Education between 1986 and 1991.

Anwar Ibrahim, who is the Minister of Education, is appointed as the first minister of finance, is the target of all kinds of speculation, since it is a public event in Malaysian politics that the person who is very pleased with the ministry of education in Malaysia is then appointed as deputy prime minister. Anwar Ibrahim, who provided prosperous and effective services in the country throughout his ministry, gained the appreciation of the people by realizing economic growth. Because of this success, Euromoney first selects him as "one of the four most influential finance ministers", and then Asiamoney announces Anwar Ibrahim as "finance minister of the year". In 1993, he won the UMNO vice presidency against Ghafar Baba, who was considering replacing Mahathir and became deputy prime minister.

In 1997, he was appointed by Mahathir to the post of deputy prime minister for two months. The evolution of Anwar Ibrahim takes place precisely after this task entrusted to him, which requires him to follow Mahathir's line. Anwar Ibrahim, believes that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) should be used due to the 1997 economic crisis, which started in Thailand, had a domino effect throughout Asia and is known as the "Southeast Asian Crisis", which reduces government expenditures and ministry salaries. It creates an austerity package that will also affect mega projects, which are the development strategy of the country's economy. The inseparable duo, whose views on crisis management begin to clash, thus begins to open up.

The first of the reasons for the conflict is that Anwar Ibrahim, who was appointed as the acting prime minister for 2 months, deviated from Mahathir's policies, took radical decisions, and changed the country's governing mechanisms, unaware of Mahathir independently. While countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Korea borrowed from the IMF in the Asian financial crises, Mahathir, who blamed foreign exchange speculators such as George Soros for the crisis, expelled the IMF from his country and alternatively implemented foreign exchange controls and tight regulation on foreign investments, and the IMF, known for its neo-liberal policies. There is a great difference in economic approach between Anwar Ibrahim, who implements the austerity programs supported by.

The second break begins when Anwar Ibrahim says that there is a mushrooming in nepotism and his own definition of "chronism" (the enrichment of state administrators) within the coalition, and pulling the National Front, which is trying to save the country from the crisis with economic maneuvers and having a hard time, into the middle of a different crisis. These allegations, which contradict Mahathir's policies to protect the domestic economy and industry from the economic crisis, increase the Prime Minister's anger and suspicion towards Anwar Ibrahim. To summarize this situation in a Chinese proverb, “One mountain is too small for two tigers”.

Although the success of the country, which has survived the financial crisis and started to be called the "Miracle of Asia", is the product of Mahathir's policies, some groups prefer to attribute the share in this transformation to Anwar Ibrahim rather than Mahathir. In fact, Anwar Ibrahim was elected Chairman of the Development Committee of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1998 due to his success in the economy.

As it is known that Anwar Ibrahim's agenda was corruption and nepotism in UMNO, the war he would start against it was also predicted. Until the plenary circulated a book full of allegations of homosexuality and corruption, titled "50 Proofs That Anwar Should Not Be Prime Minister" by Khalid Jafri, then editor of the government-sponsored newspaper Utusan Malaysia, who died in 2005.

The purpose of the writing of this book, which was handled by a pen that was hostile to the light of this shining politician, was not to give an oppositional power to the throne of the National Front, which had been controlling the country since its independence, and to prevent an opposition prime minister from passing. Upon these allegations, Anwar was dismissed from his post by Mahathir on September 2, 1998, on the grounds that he was not morally suitable for the administration.

When the allegations and accusations were reflected in the newspaper headlines in a way that shook the country the next day, more than 30,000 people gathered in the streets of Kuala Lumpur under the leadership of Anwar Ibrahim, both condemning the slanders and demanding the resignation of the prime minister.

When Mahathir Muhammed was asked why he dismissed Anwar Ibrahim, he replied "because he was morally contrary to the administration", but the situation is different on the Anwar Ibrahim front; They claim to have fallen victim to a high-level political mind so that it would not expose corruption and extremism in government.

Anwar Ibrahim is forcibly taken by 250 armed and masked police from the middle of an international press conference he was holding at his home on September 20, despite all the interventions of his supporters gathered in front of his house. Anwar, who was arrested, is beaten repeatedly by the police Inspector Rahim Noor during the interrogations. Although these heavy slanders are tried to be fermented at the grassroots, they have the opposite effect and cause nationwide protests. The slanders are described as "political murder" by Wan Azize Ismail, wife of Anwar Ibrahim. In the global arena, this decision, which activates the international community, newspaper headlines, and columnists, reveals the status quo in institutions and organizations such as the judiciary and the media, which are the key institutions of the country, by Amnesty International, and that an opposition leader has been deprived of his right to engage in politics through groundless slanders and the judiciary. The situation is condemned.

Anwar Ibrahim is sentenced to six years in prison, and then an additional 9 years in prison. Politics is banned until 2008. Taking advantage of the legal vacuum in the system while in prison, Anwar Ibrahim founded a multi-ethnic reform movement called KeADILan against UMNO under the leadership of his wife, Wan Azize Wan Ismail. In 2003, he persuaded another opposition party, known as the PRM, called the "Malaysian People's Party" to merge with the aforementioned reform movement, founding the party called Rakyat, or People's Justice Party. This small coalition is formed specifically to launder the defamation of Anwar Ibrahim and his family, and in general for a manifesto for justice and freedom against the National Front.

Anwar Ibrahim, who could not escape the clutches of the judiciary during the Mahathir era, was released in 2004 after the Malaysian Supreme Court's decision that there was insufficient evidence against the charges. Expressing that he is not angry with former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammed, who is accused of having him imprisoned, Anwar Ibrahim said, “I feel justified. It's all about justice. He made a statement to the press saying, "I don't hold grudges against anyone." For this historic acquittal, which was a turning point in Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim thanked the then Prime Minister Abdullah Bedevi for his help, not the judiciary, and asked the Bedouin to abolish the national security laws.

Despite the whole judicial and conviction process, Anwar Ibrahim, who did not give up, stated that he would continue his struggle in politics and said, "There is no question of withdrawal. I won't wait 5 years. I'm starting right now. I must say that I am committed to the struggle and reform together with the opposition parties that are committed to reform.

Sometime after his release, he spent the years 2004 and 2006 at St. Antony College, John Hopkins University, and Georgetown University as visiting professor at distinguished educational institutions.

He announces that he will run for the next general elections in 2006. Although the center cannot find a voice in the media, it causes the frustration of the grassroots to come to the surface by emphasizing the increasing inflation, political corruption, and nepotism in its country through alternative media.

In 2008, he added the other two opposition parties, PAS-Malaysia Islamic Party and DAP-Democratic Action Party, to his multi-ethnic party, forming the PR-"People's Alliance", a coalition opposing UMNO. The plans of the opposition wing are thwarted when Prime Minister Abdullah Bedouin dissolves the parliament and state legislatures and pushes the elections as early as 8 March. Because Anwar Ibrahim, whose political ban will continue until April 14, 2008, cannot participate in the elections. His wife, Wan Azize Wan Ismail, takes part in the elections, replacing Anwar Ibrahim, who handed over his duties to his wife on August 28.

For the first time since 1957, the National Front faced the worst election results in its history, losing a two-thirds majority in parliament. The government lost 82 seats in the 222-seat parliament to the opposition. After the election successes, Anwar Ibrahim, who was accused again and started to worry for his life, seeks refuge in the Turkish Embassy. Anwar Ibrahim says that the National Front has plotted various conspiracies to harm him. It is said that he took refuge in the Turkish Embassy because he had close relations with the Prime Minister of the time, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and would contribute to the solution process. Anwar Ibrahim, who left the Turkish Embassy on June 30, 2008, in order not to affect the relations between Turkey and Malaysia in the political arena, told reporters, "I am leaving of my own accord, only after I have received the guarantee of my life safety from my government."

Shortly before the 2014 elections, when the prosecution went to the appeals court, the court overturned its 2012 acquittal, and Anwar Ibrahim was sentenced to five years in prison. Anwar Ibrahim, who objects to the decision, is released, but Anwar Ibrahim, who is hoped to win the Selangor state by-elections, receives a prison sentence a week before the election date. In 2015, the Supreme Court of Malaysia upheld the conviction of Anwar, who was sentenced to five years in prison.

World's oldest prime minister: Mahathir Mohammed

After the Malaysian Islamic Party left the alliance due to a difference of opinion, Pakatan Harapan was re-established in 2015 among the opposition leaders gathered in Subang Jaya to save the future of the country. Mahathir Muhammed, on the other hand, approves the transfer of the "Malaysia United Native Party", which he founded and directed in the past, from the UMNO wing to the opposition wing in 2016. Mahathir's party officially joined Pakatan Harapan as a member party on March 14, 2017.

After the 14th Malaysian General Election, Mahathir Muhammed, who entered the elections against his party for which he served as the President of the Coalition for years and said that he would make Anwar Ibrahim the prime minister if elected, left his mark on the world's agenda by bringing the end of the 61-year-old coalition at the age of 92. After taking office as the Prime Minister, he not only compensated for his past mistakes by releasing Anwar Ibrahim, who had been imprisoned since 2015, but also for Anwar Ibrahim, whose political life ended with various accusations just before he became the 6th Prime Minister, close to winning the elections. prepared the office of the prime minister.

20 November 2022

Will Anwar Ibrahim, who received the most votes in Malaysia, or Muhyiddin Yasin, who trusts their alliances, form a government?

Malaysian King Sultan Abdullah Shah requested the political alliances that won the most seats in the 15th general election to submit their proposals for cooperation with other parties to form a government by noon on 21 November.

Despite the monsoon rains, the election race of 19 November, in which more than 21 million voters turned out high, witnessed a head-to-head rivalry between the opposition Alliance of Hope (PH) led by Anwar Ibrahim (75) and the National Alliance (PN) led by Muhyiddin Yasin (75). PH took first place, winning 82 of the 222 seats in the legislature, while PN pulled out 73 deputies.

The National Front (BN), which entered the elections under the leadership of Prime Minister İsmail Sabri Yakup, was able to win only 30 seats despite the support of the United Malay National Organization (UMNO), the most powerful political organization in the country.

The new prime minister will be determined by the political conflicts within UMNO as well as the coalition negotiations between the parties. Singapore newspaper Straits Times stated that the intention of UMNO President Ahmed Zahid Hamidi (69), who has corruption cases against him, to support Anwar Ibrahim drew a great reaction within the organization.

This election is considered as the last chance for Ibrahim, who has been competing to become the Prime Minister since 1993 but failed due to his imprisonment and political conflicts.