PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim cannot afford to be seen as being ambivalent on the Israel-Hamas war amid the rise of religious conservatism in the country, say fellows from Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.
In an article published by Fulcrum, the institute’s fellows, Julia Lau and Francis Hutchinson, said surveys consistently indicate that younger Malaysians are becoming religiously conservative.
“The opposition coalition, Perikatan Nasional, has been gathering momentum in the past year, garnering one-third of seats in Parliament and control of four state governments.
“Consequently, the prime minister can ill afford to be seen as equivocating on this issue,” they said in the article.
Lau and Hutchinson said domestic political factors meant that Anwar would likely maintain a staunch pro-Palestinian position going forward.
“He has protested fiercely against criticism from the US and Europe, saying that critics have picked the wrong person to threaten.”
Lau and Hutchinson also said that Anwar must not be indecisive on the matter as his nemesis, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, had long been vocal on the Palestine issue.
Last month, Bersatu’s Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal questioned Anwar’s assertiveness on the conflict and rated the latter’s response to the conflict as “50-50”.
Later, at a rally to show solidarity with the Palestinians, Anwar revealed that some Western powers had threatened him over his criticism of the atrocities committed by the Israeli government in the Gaza conflict.
He also revealed that Malaysia had received three “demarches”, or diplomatic notices, from the US embassy regarding the country’s position in the Israel-Palestine conflict and on Hamas. - FMT
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