Rioters challenge Malaysian leader

JAKARTA, Indonesia - Demonstrators demanding reform clashed with police in Kuala Lumpur for a second day yesterday, challenging the authority of Malaysia's autocratic prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, the longest-serving leader in Southeast Asia.

The clash, which came as Queen Elizabeth II was presiding over closing ceremonies at the 16th Commonwealth Games a few miles away, upped the ante in a dispute that started when Mahathir fired and arrested his deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, whom the demonstrators support.

AP PHOTO Riot police fire tear gas to disperse supporters of ousted Deputy Minister Anwar Ibrahim gathering in central Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Anwar was dumped Sept. 2 in a power struggle with the Mahathir amid allegations of sexual improprieties, attempted murder and corruption, all of which Anwar denies. Rather than go quietly, Anwar toured the country denouncing Mahathir and was arrested at his home on Sunday.

Although few diplomats dare predict how the challenge to Mahathir's 17-year rule would play out in a country where dissent is unheard of, there was in Malaysia an unmistakable echo of events in nearby Indonesia. A popular reform movement in Indonesia toppled President Suharto in May after 32 years in power.

In both cases, there was an aging leader who brooked no criticism, unruly demonstrators on the streets shouting for reform, and a once-robust economy that had turned sour. But most political analysts doubt an Indonesian scenario in Malaysia.

In Indonesia, Suharto's fate hung on whose side the army would take; it ended up abandoning him. But Malaysia's military is not politicized and will support whomever is in power. Also, Mahathir's corruption and nepotism is far less grievous than Suharto's, and there is no groundswell of hatred for Mahathir as there was for Suharto.

With Mahathir exercising absolute control of the media, Anwar has no public forum to either defend himself or push his case for reform. Two men have been arrested for allegedly engaging in sodomy with Anwar. Sodomy is a crime in Malaysia, a Muslim country, and local newspapers have been full of steamy details provided by the government.

Anwar, who had not uttered the word reform until three weeks ago, has had a hard time making his argument that the Mahathir government is corrupt, has mismanaged the economy and is comparable, as he charged, to the Nazi Gestapo. As finance minister and deputy prime minister until Sept. 2, he played a major role in shaping official policy.

With police helicopters buzzing overhead, officers yesterday chased mobs of protesters down side streets and blocked roads in Kuala Lumpur. Several thousand more demonstrators took to the streets in other parts of the capital, where they were chased by riot police.

Although conceding more arrests are likely, Western diplomats said it is impossible to know whether the call for reform will take popular root as it did in Indonesia, or fade away now that its leader is in jail. Anwar is charged under the Internal Security Act, which allows detention without trial. Anwar's wife said she doesn't even know where he is being held.

But given the widespread strife in economically troubled Southeast Asia, the envoys agree that events in Kuala Lumpur are worrying.

Ever since 1969 riots against ethnic Chinese in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia has worked to maintain racial harmony by trying to include its Malay, Chinese and Indian citizens in sharing the benefits of national prosperity and peace. Civil unrest could split that coalition of Malaysia's 22 million people.

09-22-98