Najib 'UNDRESSED' by the int'l press: From champion of double-talk to "FALSE DEMOCRAT"

If Prime Minister Najib Razak thought he had succeeded in pulling wool over the eyes of the Malaysian people and the international community with a slew of reforms that have been described as "whitewash", "insincere" and "sinister", he is terribly wrong - just like the mythical Emperor who wore no clothes.

Just months ago, he was crowned co-champion of "double-talk" by the influential Washington Post when he deported Saudi journalist Hamza Kashgari home to certain torture and perhaps even death. The blunt-speaking by the US paper raised eyebvrows and caused many to cough nervously in the corridors of power in Putrajaya, the Malaysian administrative capital.

But no, Najib and his advisers would not take the hint and clean up their act. Stubbornly, they clung to the belief that because they controlled the local mainstream media, they held the upper hand. If they told a lie often enough, the people and the world would believe them.

But no. Not only has Najib's attempts to pass glib sleight-of-hand laws to benefit his own hold on power as 'genuine reforms' been seen through, they have also been slammed locally whilst a reputable Canadian newspaper has categorized him as being a "false democrat".

"False democracies give the impression of being freer than they really are, which means they rarely face the kind of international pressure that the ally nasty regimes get," said the article published on June 8 by The Globe and Mail.

Like Mubarak & Co, Najib will use all ways to cling on

Entitled 'A 21st-century checklist of the new autocrats', the article also places Najib in the same league as the world's worst autocrats. The author Mark Mackinnon had categorised autocrats into four groups - false democrats, mad egotists, violent populists and callous capitalists.

Najib was put into the first category, along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. The 'ex-members' of the club are former Yugoslavia president Slobodan Milosevic and former Egypt president Hosni Mubarak.

Mackinnon said such leaders "hold elections but have no intention of giving up power" and their "serious political rivals are jailed and their parties are outlawed on legal technicalities".

GE-13 promises to be "interesting"

As such, there is reason for hope in countries governed by these leaders as the "false democracies" practised by them created the possibility of change.

"Mr Milosevic and Mr Mubarak were ousted because citizens used the political space allowed them in a false democracy... The next election in Malaysia promises to be interesting," said Mackinnon.

However, in a rebuttal published today, the Malaysian Foreign Affairs Ministry detailed a list of reforms initiated by Najib over the past three years, describing these as "an impressive track record by anyone's standards".

The reforms included the abolition of Internal Security Act, ending of a 60-year state of emergency, measures to increase media freedom, amendment to the Universities and University Colleges Act, the enactment of the Peaceful Assembly Act, announcement to review the Sedition Act, repeal of the Banishment Act and the Restricted Residences Act, as well as the implementation of electoral reforms.

"This view does not tally with the fact that the opposition won an unprecedented number of seats in the last election.Next time round, Malaysians will again be free to choose who they want to lead their country - and while the prime minister takes nothing for granted, he hopes he will be given a mandate to continue Malaysia's transformation," fumed foreign ministry under-secretary Ahmad Rozian in his letter.

Malaysia Chronicle