From International Herald Tribune
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Malaysians called it a political tsunami when public discontent loosened the government’s five-decade grip on power in elections a year ago. The period since has been likened to a circus.
The National Front coalition remains in power, and main opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has had to back off claims that he would topple the government within months.
But normally predictable Malaysian politics is increasingly less so, as new cracks keep opening up in the ruling coalition.
The prime minister is being forced out by an open revolt in his own party. The National Front lost two special elections to fill parliamentary vacancies, an unimaginable result in the past. And the government’s attempt to oust an opposition-led state government has wound up in deadlock, with both sides claiming to be in charge.
The unprecedented weakness of the National Front has emboldened Malaysians to demand more rights in a country accustomed to virtual one-party rule since independence in 1957.
