Anwar Ibrahim is one of the few contemporary Malaysian leaders who enjoy worldwide recognition. In 1996 Asiamoney named him Finance Minister of the Year, and in 1998 he was Asian of the Year for Newsweek International.
In the last couple of decades, however, Anwar has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. It all began with his arrest in September 1998 on charges of sodomy and corruption thanks to a political rivalry between him and Mahathir Mohamad. He was convicted and sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment — six for corruption and nine for sodomy.
The sodomy conviction was overturned in 2004 due to a lack of evidence but Anwar was arrested again in 2008 on fresh charges of sodomy which were, in 2012, disproved for the second time resulting in his acquittal.
But in 2014 a court of appeal overruled the acquittal and reinstated his conviction with a five-year jail term. It was an unexpected political deal in May 2018 between Anwar and Mahathir that secured Anwar’s complete freedom after King Sultan Muhammad V pardoned him at Mahathir’s request.
Although Mahathir reneged on his promise to hand over power to Anwar within a specified time after winning the elections, it did not demoralise or deter Anwar from standing firm in his own commitment to the Malaysian cause. In recognition of this, Pakatan Harapan, a powerful Malaysian political coalition, has named him as its prime minister candidate in the forthcoming (November 19, 2022) general election.
Malaysia’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim greets supporters in Tambun, Perak, Malaysia. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Anwar’s vision
Anwar is confident of winning and hopes to transform Malaysia, a country where Muslims constitute almost two-thirds of the population. He articulates his vision in his latest book, SCRIPT for a Better Malaysia: An Empowering Vision and Policy Framework for Action, where the acronym SCRIPT stands for Sustainability, Care and Compassion, Respect, Innovation, Prosperity, and Trust.
Anwar believes that the SCRIPT framework — based on these “six drivers” — is an integrated, holistic endeavour that will lay the foundations for a thriving, dynamic, and inclusive society. His policy agenda, he writes, aspires to navigate Malaysia through “the complexity, contradictions, and chaos” of what he calls “postnormal times”, citing scholar Ziauddin Sardar.
The book redefines the six SCRIPT drivers after outlining their conventional meaning and goes on to enunciate the specific vision behind them, and their targeted population and areas. It also explores the policy requirement for each driver in terms of its economic, legal, institutional, educational, social, cultural, and locational needs.
For instance, Anwar’s definition of sustainability is rooted in the Malaysian concepts of kemampanan and keseimbangan where the former signifies collective effort and the latter the well-being of entire humanity.
In this context, Anwar deserves to be commended for reinterpreting the Quranic terms fasaad and islaah in 7:56 to render the verse: “Do not degrade the earth after it has been so well-ordered.” This interpretation makes sense because the next two verses (7:57-58) speak of the natural rejuvenation of the planet through winds (riyaaha) that distribute heavy rain-bearing clouds (sahaaban siwaalan) over barren tracts of land (baladin mayyitin).
Anwar’s benign unconventionalism is also evident in his inclusive understanding of “care and compassion” which he universalises to include love for not just one’s own community but members of other communities as well. Additionally, “the right of the society to receive, care and compassion is both a duty to give and a right to receive.”
Freedoms and rights
Anwar’s ultimate intention is to establish financial policies that advocate humane economic models. “To make up for lost time,” he warns, “we must abolish tax concessions and incentives that allow businesses and enterprises to pursue disrespectful practices with ill-regard for past, present, or future human dignity.” He also expresses the need to address the ongoing debt crisis in Malaysia by “refining and reforming loan procedures and reviewing and cancelling unjust and disrespectful debts and financial impediments.”
On the legal side, Anwar promises to repeal “draconic and disrespectful laws” that marginalise citizens on the basis of gender, race, religion, creed, and lifestyle. And, to convince the world of Malaysia’s honest intentions, “we must initiate a national human rights audit and respect third-party international audits requested of us,” he assures.
Anwar has also shown a long-standing commitment to religious moderation and democracy. As far back as December 2005, in an address to the New York Democracy Forum Anwar had listed “freedom of conscience, freedom to speak out against tyranny, a call for reform and the right to property” among the higher objectives of the shariah (maqaasid al shariah). In SCRIPT too he defines maqaasid al shariah as “justice grounded in the empowerment of the poor and marginalised.”
In sum, Anwar’s SCRIPT is a practicably futuristic document that could put Malaysia on the path to inclusive democracy and economic progress, a task that would become easier if Anwar Ibrahim becomes the prime minister.
SCRIPT for a Better Malaysia: An Empowering Vision and Policy Framework for Action; Anwar Ibrahim, Institut Darul Ehsan, RM59.
The reviewer is Secretary-General of the Islamic Forum for the Promotion of Moderate Thought.
