KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed praised the country's economic and political success in recent decades, but also added that people must comprehend that democracy has its limitations. He argued that progress can be hampered by the democratic process and called on people to understand the limitations on freedom. “Instead, it will result only in instability, and instability will not permit development to take place and the people to enjoy the benefits of freedom and the rights that democracy promises,” he said. Mohamed, who was Malaysia's prime minister for 22 years before stepping down in 2003, made the comments in his keynote lecture at the University of Santo Tomas' (UST) special convocation in the Philippine capital, Manila. He was being given an honorary professorship by the university. The honor is bestowed on distinguished foreign individuals who have achieved exceptional distinction in their respective fields of expertise, the Bernama news agency reported. Previous recipients include a Nobel laureate in chemistry and a chancellor from the Vatican, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry. In his speech, the text of which was made available to the media here, Mohamed spoke at length about the possible setbacks of democracy as he referred to a country which had been unable to progress because of what he described as “too much democracy.” “No sooner is a government elected when the losers would hold demonstrations and general strikes, accusing the government of malpractices. “The government has to deal with these disruptions and neglect the work of governing and development that it is expected to carry out. The disruption could be so serious as to force the government to resign,” he said without naming the country in question. Mohamed said no doubt democracy was being practised by this particular country but he questioned whether this was really what democracy was all about, posing the question, “Is democracy the end or the means?” Noting that Malaysia was not a liberal democracy, he said democracy was viewed principally as providing an “easy way” to change governments. “No revolution, no civil wars, no Arab spring. Just vote and the government will be brought down or re-elected according to the wishes of the people,” the former PM said. He drove home the point that in the Malaysian elections, candidates from opposition parties could win and they had indeed captured a number of state governments. Malaysia has long been viewed by analysts and observers as an example of progress. In the Middle East, where uprisings have ousted three leaders and have created hope for the future, officials have repeatedly called on their new governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen to look toward Malaysia as an example of Islamic progress.
