Asia | Banyan

Why does the West back the wrong Asian leaders?

The supposed bastions of liberalism need to fix their picker

Illustration of broken glass with Anwar Ibrahim's face in it
Photograph: Lan Truong

On August 27th Malaysian prosecutors charged Muhyiddin Yassin, the leader of the opposition, with sedition. His crime? Complaining that the king did not ask him to form a government after the last general election, even though he claimed to have the support of a majority of parliament. It was the second indictment for Mr Muhyiddin. Last year, prosecutors charged him with misuse of funds while prime minister from 2020 to 2021, which he denies.

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This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “The definition of madness ”

From the August 31st 2024 edition

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