President Barack Obama urged young people in predominantly Muslim Malaysia on Friday to reject the “terrible vision” that drove the Paris attacks, offering an alternative vision in which traditional cultures coexist with a diverse modern world.
“You can set an example,” Mr. Obama told college-age youngsters in Kuala Lumpur. “Not just to stand up to violent extremism, but to build interfaith dialogue, to promote tolerance.”
At a town hall meeting at an American-style university, Mr. Obama called on the next generation to avoid a mindset in which people divide themselves along ethnic, racial or tribal lines, calling it a precursor to discrimination. He said the next step in that thought process is to demonize those who are different, and that line of thinking is wreaking havoc and violence across the Middle East.
“Those countries are in chaos so many of them because of this notion that somehow, if somebody worships God differently than you, that they’re less than you,” Mr. Obama said. “And people are slaughtered based on that idea.”
The President echoed that theme later Friday in a meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, in which the leaders discussed strengthened counterterrorism ties and a recent agreement to make Malaysia a centre for countering extremist messaging. Mr. Obama said that, as a majority Muslim nation that represents tolerance and peace, Malaysia’s “voice is critical.”
“This region is not immune from the threat of violent extremism,” Mr. Najib said, including organisations allied with the Islamic State group. “It is evil. It is against Islam. It is a perversion of Islam. They do not represent us.”
The two leaders’ plea to fight extremist narratives came one week after Islamic militants killed 129 and wounded hundreds more in Paris. In a fresh reminder of the extremist threat, as Mr. Obama was holding his town hall, gunmen were attacking a hotel in Mali, where they took about 170 hostages and shouted “God is great” in Arabic. Mr. Obama later noted that he was monitoring the situation.
Mr. Obama sought to expose the ideology he said leads to such violence as he spoke to some 500 participants of his Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, part of Mr. Obama’s broader effort to expand U.S. ties to the Asia—Pacific region.
The President’s visit to Taylor’s University was his first stop after arriving in Kuala Lumpur, the last leg of his 9-day trip to Malaysia, the Philippines and Turkey. He was greeted by repeated cheers by an enthusiastic crowd of young men in traditional songkok caps and women whose brightly coloured hijabs created a sea of red, pink, purple, green and blue.
Ahead of the visit, Mr. Obama faced criticism for being too chummy with Mr. Najib, who is embroiled in a scandal over allegations of corruption related to a debt-ridden state investment fund. At issue is $700 million that ended up in Mr. Najib’s personal bank accounts, allegedly from the fund.
During his annual Hawaii vacation last year, Mr. Obama played a round of golf with Mr. Najib, who was also vacationing there. Rights groups have also accused Mr. Najib of human rights abuses and a crackdown on press freedoms.
Mr. Najib suggested Mr. Obama had “raised some of his views” about those issues in their meeting. Although Mr. Najib said Malaysia was committed to reforms, he added that they must be balanced against ensuring peace and stability.
Asked about those issues during the town hall, Mr.Obama didn’t mention Mr. Najib by name, but he said he intended to raise such issues with Malaysia’s government while in the country. Still, Mr. Obama emphasized that the U.S. must do business and work closely even with countries whose records are far from perfect.
“The United States has to have some humility, because there have been times when we did the wrong thing,” Mr. Obama said.
A major dose of humility arrived minutes later when one spry young man told the grey-haired President he was “aging toward a very senior life.” Although Mr. Obama said it hurt his feelings, he took it in stride. He laughed it off as he directed the questioner to finish his question and sit down.
“The first thing I want from young people is to stop calling me old,” Mr. Obama said.
