I don't care much whether people remember me or not. If people remember, well and good. If they don't remember, it's alright - I'm dead anyway.
Mahathir Mohamad
If you want to be honest with yourself, you have to take criticism, even if you attract adverse comments from others.
I believe that every leader has a right to implement his own policy. But when I see things that are done that are not right - abuse of power, wrong approaches, wrong strategies, making use of foreign consultants, including those discarded by other countries - I feel that I have to have my say.
In my years, I had the opportunity to observe peoples and countries. I see some countries doing well, others failing, and my analysis of things is that whether you fail or succeed is a function of your value system.
If we keep on raking up the past, you can never work with anybody. You will always be fighting against your enemies, and that is bad.
Justice is the most important thing. In a plural society like Malaysia, you cannot have two laws - one law for the Muslim, one law for the non-Muslim.
Independence means we enjoy freedom. We are not colonised by people. And we can govern our own country and develop it independently so that our people can live a better life.
There's no point in treating a currency like a commodity, devaluing it artificially and causing a lot of poverty among poor countries.
The little Napoleons in UMNO try to keep out people who are more intelligent than themselves.
The thinning of the ozone layer is blamed on logging of tropical forests. The fact that the burning of fossil fuels and release of CFCs (chloro-fluoro-carbons) into the atmosphere occur largely in the rich countries are significantly ignored.
There is no such thing as absolute freedom of the press, not even in the most advanced countries in the world. There are things you just don't say, because it will destabilise the environment.
The Jews are not merely hook-nosed but understand money instinctively.
Jews rule the world by proxy.
It is always the right of the mighty which prevails over the weak, and that is very primitive.
I am saying that currency trading is unnecessary, unproductive, and immoral. It should be stopped. It should be made illegal.
Planning means looking ahead.
When you have a prime minister who is corrupt, then you can be sure that a country cannot be anything else but corrupt.
There are certain things that we can deal with by following the rules. But at times, we find the rules restrict you from doing the right things. On such occasions, we have to rethink - either you change the rules or break the rules.
The West is very impatient. You want overnight change.
A country without engineering skill and knowledge will never become a developed country.
For me, to say I want to go to sleep and retire and prepare for my afterlife, I think that is very selfish.
When I was first named as Deputy Prime Minister, there was a feeling of shock that I should be chosen because I was labeled as being an ultra and very anti-Chinese.
When the people believe that the print media and the government-controlled TV are not really reporting what is happening, then people turn away from them, and their next resort is, of course, to access the Internet and what they can get on the Internet.
When you are in the government, you have to demonise your opposition.
When developing countries go to the WTO and register their protest over things, they should be heard. Their views should be considered by the rich countries.
Running a democratic country is one of the most difficult things for any government.
We have had dealings with terrorists for a long time. From 1948 until 1990, we had domestic terrorism because the pro-communist groups wanted to overthrow the colonial government.
If the countries of Europe and of North America can be almost uniformly prosperous, we don't see why we cannot be allowed to be a little prosperous.
I am the first authoritarian government elected to become a dictator and then resigning as a dictator. So this is the first dictator in the world who has resigned while still quite healthy.
In the eyes of the world, Malaysia has become a pariah state, a state where anyone can be hauled up and questioned by the police, detained, and charged through abusing laws of the country.
The Internet has played a major role in undermining public morality.
The biggest mistake that I have made in my life is choosing Najib.
I assume that people react to things as I would react. For example, if you are nice to people, they should be nice to you.
Sudden change, even if it is for the good, is disruptive.
The Chinese are welcome to invest in industries in Malaysia. But just as we would not welcome mass immigration of Indians or Pakistanis or Europeans or Africans into Malaysia, we have to adopt the same stance on Chinese immigration into Malaysia.
Not many dictators announce their resignation, but I did because I didn't want to stay on and overstay my welcome.
The Malays are spiritually inclined, tolerant, and easy-going. The non-Malays, and especially the Chinese, are materialistic, aggressive, and have an appetite for work. For equality to come about, it is necessary that these strikingly contrasting races adjust to each other.
Free press is not absolute. In this country, we say clearly if you start stirring up racial hatred, then we will put a stop to it. We might even close down your paper, because these things can only lead to a lot of riots and bloodshed.
Airplanes don't just disappear - certainly not these days with all the powerful communication systems, radio and satellite tracking, and filmless cameras which operate almost indefinitely and possess huge storage capacities.
I am not anti-European. I have many friends and acquaintances who are Europeans.
Forcing some countries to accept democracy is something that should not be done.
Whenever I am asked who I admire most among the leaders I have met, I have no hesitation in naming Nelson Mandela.
I don't care how sacred is freedom, but I think the time has come for governments, at least the Malaysian government, to censor the Internet.
Affirmative action is not something that the World Bank believes in or promotes.
I am glad to be labeled anti-Semitic.
Malaysia is particularly sensitive: we have three races here and 29 different tribes. If you allow people to say what they like, there will be violence, confrontations, and all that. We need stability.
In Malaysia, trials have always been fair.
It is not true at all that a free market will ensure a democracy. It doesn't. There must be a balance between a free market and some regulations which are essential in order to safeguard the interests of consumers and of people in general.
Most Americans, I think, know very little about East Asia or Southeast Asia. American businesspeople who have been here, they are very knowledgeable about this area, but the average American? No.
If you look at the Malaysian media, you will find that, although some are supportive of the government, many are not, and they are very critical of the government.
