Malaysia’s Former Deputy Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Democratic revolutionary Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia is being approached by … well, someone … to apply for the top United Nations post, to succeed UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

I think it’s a great idea!

Anwar is a terrific leader whose appeal extends borders and who can talk to all kinds of people. Young men in Indonesia, who might otherwise move over to follow the Islamofascists, drop those stupid ideas when asked about Anwar, whom they really admire. He’s an authentic globalist and a very reasonable Muslim. I remember the democratic reformasi revolutionaries of 1998 in Jakarta has a particular admiration for him, even though he was Malaysian and they were Indonesian. (Culturally, they are very close.)

But that doesn’t mean there isn’t something for the rest of us, too. Anwar is a reasonable, sensible guy who’s spoken out against Islamofascist violence (when I lived in Singapore next door in 1998, I specifically recall him ragging on about how gross the Taliban was) and promoted Eastern values – like hard work, prosperity, sound economics, stable families, and empowering everyone. He’s not a fan of handouts, he’s a fan of opportunity.

Anwar led a partial democracy revolution Malaysia in 1998, over the question of due process (it wasn’t the whole hog like Indonesia 1998), and was politically persecuted by nationalist dinosaur Mohamad Mahathir (who is not a total villain, but shouldn’t have persecuted Anwar either), who threw him in jail for several years and did what was really important to him – banned him from running for office in Malaysia for several years.

Mahathir is out, and his successor is very decent, but that leaves the splendid presence of Anwar un-utilized. He’s a communicator, he’s an authentic moderate, he understands economics, he has the right instincts, he believes in prosperity, and he’s a good leader. I’d love to see him lead the United Nations.

The Sydney Morning Herald has the rest of the story here.

UPDATE: Blogger DSAI at Critical Thoughts says that Anwar has got his own blog now, he has the link to it, too! See it here.