MH 370- Airliner crisis compounds Malaysian government’s woes Malaysias missing-plane crisis has exposed the shortcomings of a ruling regime already wrestling with a rapidly shrinking support base, fierce racial divisions and international criticism of its tough handling of political opponents. The same government has ruled since Malaysias birth in 1957, and political observers said its much-criticised response to the jet drama is symptomatic of years of institutional atrophy under an ethnic Malay elite known for cronyism. Analysts said rancour over the still-unexplained disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 and its 239 people, two-thirds of whom were Chinese, could also complicate plans to draw closer to China – Malaysias biggest trading partner and a growing source of tourist revenue. The general level of Malaysian political performance, competence and adequacy has plummeted, said Clive Kessler, a Malaysia politics researcher at the University of New South Wales, who cites a long, slow, protracted crisis of governance over the past decade. Experts stress that any country would struggle to cope with the planes baffling disappearance on March 8, and Malaysia denies mishandling it. But allegations of incompetence and evasiveness have clearly unsettled the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government. BN is unused to being challenged by Malaysias meek, state-dominated press and has basked in decades of admiration of Malaysia as an economically successful melting pot, despite longstanding criticism over policies that discriminate against non-Malay minorities. But ashen-faced officials have been subjected to daily grillings by combative foreign media in daily briefings in sometimes tense scenes beamed live in Malaysia and around the world. This is not a good look for Malaysia. I do think that the Barisan government has done some serious damage to its international reputation, said Michael Barr, an Asian politics expert at Australias Flinders University. The affair also has trained attention on BNs bruising political tactics, particularly its treatment of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. Anwar, who accuses the government of hurling false criminal charges against him in a bid to halt the stunning recent successes of his opposition alliance, was convicted of sodomy and sentenced to five years in jail just hours before MH370 took off. The verdict, denounced by rights groups and questioned by Washington, was dragged into the MH370 media glare after it was revealed that the flights captain, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, was a member of Anwars political party. With an international audience watching, this is showing that what (Malaysias government) thinks is acceptable here, is not at all tolerable by international standards, said Bridget Welsh, a Malaysia politics analyst at Singapore Management University. BN is routinely rapped by anti-graft groups for widespread corruption and cronyism – Defence and acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, the governments face on MH370, is the cousin of Prime Minister Najib Razak. Even Chinas opaque Communist Party leadership has criticised Malaysias perceived lack of transparency, while Chinese relatives of passengers angrily allege a cover-up. Pragmatic Beijing is unlikely to upset mutually beneficial trade links, but the plane drama will certainly cause economic worry in Malaysia, said Welsh. Exports to China have become critical to maintaining the growth BN banks on for support. Bilateral trade has soared – up 11.8% in 2013 to US$106 billion (RM350.7 billion), according to Chinese figures. Najib and Chinas President Xi Jinping last year pledged still-cosier ties and targeted US$160 billion in trade by 2017. The flow of Chinese tourists to Malaysia also has accelerated, hitting 1.8 million in 2013, up 15% year–on–year, behind only Singaporean and Indonesian visitors. This will require a significant effort to rebuild Malaysias credibility abroad, Welsh said of the potential economic impact. Once you lose it, it takes time to win back. The crisis comes at a bad time for the mild-mannered Najib, who launched a reform drive three years ago in a failed bid to shore up voter support. That has been abandoned under pressure from conservatives in his ruling party, and Najib appears weakened. Malaysian voters have deserted BN at an accelerating pace over corruption, rule of law concerns, and a sense of drift. Anwars opposition won more votes than BN in May 2013 elections but the ruling coalition retained parliament thanks to seat allocations that favour its rural Malay base. In particular, Malaysias sizable Chinese community – whose industriousness is a critical component of growth – increasingly chafe under a decades-old system of preferences for Malays. Racial tensions also have flared in recent months over disputes between the Muslim majority and Christian minority. Analysts said BN could turn things around by successfully appealing to national unity amid the crisis – especially if the plane is found. Hishammuddin outlined that hope yesterday, saying the MH370 situation cuts across race, cuts across religion and now it cuts across boundaries amongst Malaysians. – AFP, March 22, 2014.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 05:37:39 +0000
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