GOVERNMENTS that had had a prickly relationship with Malaysia under Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s previous government must not stop engaging with the country on account of his past as an authoritarian leader, an opinion piece in the Nikkei Asian Review said.

They should not assume that Dr Mahathir, who was the fourth and now seventh prime minister, would “resurrect old dreams and grudges” as he was now in a different Malaysia with different cabinet colleagues who will hold him to institutional reform.

The 93-year-old also has little time left, the opinion piece’s writer Hamish McDonald noted, as he was focused on finding revenue for Malaysia after scrapping an unpopular consumption tax and bringing back fuel subsidies to stabilise pump prices.

Dr Mahathir’s government is also focused on getting to the bottom of scandals left in former prime minister Najib Razak’s wake, including 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

Malaysia under Dr Mahathir has had rough diplomatic ties in the past with Singapore and Australia, and was “cool” towards western countries like the UK and US as the prime minister for 22 years had preferred “looking east” to Japan. 

Malaysia had also come under fire from the US over human rights, with Dr Mahathir’s sacking and jailing of Anwar Ibrahim when the former was prime minister and the latter his deputy.

Both men are now allies in the new Pakatan Harapan government, with Anwar expected to take over the prime minister’s post when Dr Mahathir steps down.

But even if the “old man might not have changed, the political context has”, the opinion piece noted. 

Lynchpin Malay party Umno is weakened by defeat while Dr Mahathir is part of a multiracial, multi-party coalition.

Dr Mahathir’s critics should not expect him to reverse policies or recant from those he instituted in his time but recognise that Malaysia now had an “important opportunity for reform” to steer away from the abuse of race, religion and royalty among the Malays.

The May 9 elections had also showed that Malaysia’s parliamentary democracy and multiculturalism had been revitalised.

“By assisting these reforms where they can, foreign partners can help guide Malaysia on a more positive, forward-looking, path.”