Fadzil Noor, Islamist Leader in Malaysia -- Rest in Peace

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Subject:

Fadzil Noor, Islamist Leader in Malaysia

Author:
Pam

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Date Posted: June 26, 2002 3:29:37 EDT

Fadzil Noor, the leader of Malaysia's opposition Islamic party, died Sunday, hospital officials said. He had heart bypass surgery two weeks ago and never regained consciousness. He was 65.

Mr. Fadzil was the leader of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party.

His death threw Malaysian politics into deeper uncertainty a day after Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad announced that he was resigning, then reversed himself after supporters begged him to stay and lead his party into elections against the Islamic opposition.

Mr. Mahathir, who has ruled for 21 years, has accused the Islamic groups of of promoting extremism among Malay Muslims, the country's largest ethnic group. Alcohol and gambling have been banned and other strict Islamic laws imposed in the states they lead.

Mr. Fadzil, who led the party since 1989, was viewed as a moderate compared with hard-line clerics in the party who want to declare the country an Islamic state.

Mr. Fadzil's death is a setback for the pro-Islamic contingent, which have been under pressure since the attacks in the United States on Sept. 11. Their statements supporting the Taliban rule in Afghanistan had alienated many Malaysians and strengthened the standing of Mr. Mahathir's United Malays National Organization.

The governing party is increasingly expected to call elections a year early, in 2003, to try to reverse gains that the pro-Islamic forces made in 1999, when they gained more seats in Parliament and took control of a second of Malaysia's 13 states.

The opposition gains were attributed to a backlash against the firing and jailing of Mr. Mahathir's popular deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, who is serving 15 years in prison for corruption and sodomy. Mr. Anwar says he was framed to prevent him from challenging Mr. Mahathir for power.

Mr. Fadzil had warned other pro-Islamic leaders that imposing harsh Islamic laws across the board would bring unrest in a multiracial country with large non-Muslim ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities. His deputy, the more hard-line Abdul Hadi Awang, took over his duties temporarily when Mr. Fadzil failed to regain consciousness after the surgery.

Mr. Fadzil cobbled together a coalition of opposition parties in 1999 to challenge Mr. Mahathir's coalition, bringing in allies that included a party headed by Mr. Anwar's wife, but it collapsed last year.

Mr. Fadzil epitomized a traditional Malay trait of politeness in politics, preferring veiled references over direct attacks. He recently had recalled that Mr. Mahathir was his family doctor in the rural Kedah state before the two men entered politics. Mr. Mahathir was a good doctor then, he said, and should return to practice.

Mr. Fadzil is survived by his wife and eight children.

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