SINGAPORE -- After months of futile attempts at various kinds of measures, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad may have hit upon the right combination to effectively deal with a formidable political opponent -- the fundamentalist Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS).
His National Front (NF) coalition government has not only banned political rallies, called ceramahs, but also detained several young PAS leaders under the country's Internal Security Act (ISA), which allows detention without trial for at least 60 days. The detainees were accused of being part of an overseas Islamic militant movement.
Mahathir's objective against PAS is quite clear in the government's latest moves. First, by banning political rallies, he is denying PAS valuable access to the people. The opposition party has been highly successful not only in criticizing the coalition's policies, but also in collecting donations from the massive crowds that flock to its rallies.