There is the question of criminal immunity for politicians in his party. Senior ministers have immunity from indictment for personal felonies, and this is a serious matter. It places the entire country at risk, destroying confidence in fundamental judicial processes. He is silent.

There is the question of false arrest. Malaysia is the world's leading exponent of prosecuting and vilifying its idealists, making martyrs and historical figures of them. It is painful for his people to watch, and he is personally held to be cruelly responsible for all of them. This is an irony for a man who enjoys participating in global affairs. He would like to be thought a statesman. He is instead held an enemy to thought and reason. His sense of beauty evades search. He is silent.

There is the question of bribes for permits to pursue business contracts in Malaysia. Government contracts have become the instruments of national infamy as foreign firms report paying bribes for 'consulting fees' to government ministers to receive contracts. Thus both contracting parties become subject to blackmail, not only losing mutual respect, but developing a cynical resentment based on assumed moral superiority toward each other. Mahathir openly displays this attitude, though he is quiet on its origins. The initiation and gelation of this policy is his, as is the national shame it brings. He is silent.

There is the question of election fraud. Although evidence abounds that the election apparatus is suspect, destroying public faith in democratic processes, the fraud progresses without any perceptible attempt to make the elections credible. The presence of voluntary international monitors is viewed as a threat rather than an opportunity for improved perceptions. But the system works; it keeps Mahathir and his malefactors in power. This fact, amid renewed statements that only 'effective systems' are to retained, relegates Malaysia permanently to international back waters. Mahathir is silent.

The world awaits honest leadership in Malaysia. Justice and truth are offered by many for whom the basic tenets of morality have meaning. There are many who await patiently the truly Islamic government, leaders who put public good over personal reward. Their faith in Mahathir is that his tenure is short.

The failure of Umno to engage in a sincere dialogue on important questions marks its demise. On the issue of Islamic honesty and truth there is much mouth wind by Mahathir and his ministers, but no action.

Improvement for Malaysia, posed as a task for the next generation, is encouraged by an older one which admits failure. To the extent that the Mahathir era has a legacy, it generates a determination to reject the greedy, the cruel, the immoral, and to begin again with fresh vision.