Mahathir Mohamad
Mahathir bin Mohamad is a Malaysian politician, author, and doctor who served as the fourth and seventh Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held office from 1981 to 2003 and later from 2018 to February 2020 for a cumulative total of 24 years, making him the country's longest-serving prime minister. Before becoming premier, he served as Deputy Prime Minister and in other cabinet positions. He was a Member of Parliament for Langkawi from 2018 to 2022, Kubang Pasu from 1974 to 2004, and Kota Star Selatan from 1964 to 1969. His political career spanned more than 75 years, from joining protests opposing citizenship policies for non-Malays in the Malayan Union in the 1940s to forming the Gerakan Tanah Air coalition in 2022.
Some of the key events about Mahathir Mohamad
- 1964Elected as a Member of Parliament for the first time
- 1974Appointed as Minister of Education
- 1981Became Malaysia's fourth Prime Minister
- 1981Implemented the "Look East" policy, which some critics argued led to increased authoritarianism and erosion of Western-style civil liberties
- 1987Authorized "Operation Lalang", resulting in the arrest of 106 people under the Internal Security Act
- 1988Dismissed the Lord President of the Supreme Court, compromising judicial independence
- 1991Launched Vision 2020, a national development plan
- 1998Successfully hosted the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur
- 1998Fired and arrested Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on charges of corruption and sodomy
- 1998Imposed capital controls during the Asian financial crisis, a controversial move criticized by some economists
- 1999Introduced the Multimedia Super Corridor to boost technological development
- 2001Introduced the controversial Internal Security Act, allowing detention without trial
- 2003Stepped down as Prime Minister after 22 years in office
- 2003Made anti-Semitic remarks at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit, drawing international condemnation
- 2009Received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the United Nations
- 2015Founded the Perdana Leadership Foundation to promote nation-building
- 2015Criticized Prime Minister Najib Razak over the 1MDB scandal, leading to political instability
- 2018Became the world's oldest elected leader at 92 when re-elected as Prime Minister
- 2018Formed an alliance with former political opponents, seen by some as opportunistic
- 2020Resigned as Prime Minister, causing political turmoil and the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government
Disclaimer: This material is written based on information taken from open sources, including Wikipedia, news media, podcasts, and other public sources.
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