To some Malay Malaysians, especially those in the urban upper middle-class who are politically inclined to accept the Umno version of modernity and progress, acting PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang conjures up a strong image of 'extremism', 'parochialism', 'fanaticism' and 'male chauvinism'.
The proposed Islamic Criminal Law or Hudud is seen as an epitome of that combination of 'reactionary' ideas.
For some non-Malays, Hadi Awang is typically associated with the restriction on alcoholic sale and consumption, legalised separation of men and women in public places and all the 'kill-joy' policies and pronouncements.
Yet, there are Muslims and non-Muslims who honestly think that the successor to the late PAS president and Opposition Leader Fadzil Mohd Noor, is not as unacceptable as his popular image suggests.
At least, he carries the royal decoration of
Dato' Seri
, which makes him a royal peer of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim. He also enjoys close and cordial relationship with the young Sultan of Terengganu who was educated in Australia and the United States.
It is well known that while the Islamic theologian and politician graduated with a master's degree from the Al-Azhar University in Egypt is very 'strict' and 'fundamentalist' in interpreting Quranic provisions and injunctions, he has been surprisingly liberal and enlightened in his view on inter-ethnic relations in Malaysia.
For example, as far back as 1985, Hadi has been opining that the race-based and pro-Malay affirmative action, the New Economic Policy (NEP), should be abolished because it is an institution of "ethnic chauvinism" or assabiyah which, according to him, is not compatible with Islamic teachings. Hadi was accused by Umno to be 'anti-Malay' in the 1986 general election for suggesting that once PAS comes to power, the NEP would be dismantled.
More transparent, less corrupt
Since his party came to power in Terengganu in 1999, there has also not been any serious complaint by non-Muslims about any infringement of their right to profess their religion or performing religious duties. Mandarin schools, some argue, obtain better government support under the administration of Hadi. Government is also more transparent and less corrupt.
While maternity leave for mothers who are employed as public servants remain at 60 days in other parts of Malaysia, Hadi's administration has extended it to 90. In Terengganu, ruled by PAS, it has also adopted a five-day working week.
Also, contrary to popular stereotype, Hadi has never been parochial. He not only travels widely in the country, but also overseas. Last year, he went to the United States, and in 1985, he went to Australia.
Living in a simple house, Hadi nevertheless found it practical or enjoyable to drive a four-wheel-drive Pajero after he was elected for the first time as a member of parliament in 1990.
Thus, Hadi is, like all other politicians, a grey entity and a mixture of 'firmness' or 'bigotry', and 'moderation' or 'opportunism'. He is, above all, a non-Umno Malay and Muslim who can garner political support while rejecting Malay nationalism articulated and propagated by Umno since 1946.
Addressed respectfully and affectionately by his followers and supporters as Tuan Guru or master, Haji Abdul Hadi Haji Awang was born on Oct 20, 1947 in Kampung Rusila in the district of Marang in Terengganu. His late father was also a famous and respected religious teacher who imparted Islamic values and knowledge to many Muslims in the eastern state of Malaysia, including members of the royal family.
After completing his primary and secondary education in Terengganu, Hadi pursued his tertiary education in Madinah Islamic University in Saudi Arabia under a scholarship of the Saudi Arabian government. After graduating with his first degree, he went to the Oxford of the Islamic world, namely Al-Azhar University in Egypt, from 1974 to 1976 to obtain his master's in Islamic jurisprudence.
Upon return from Egypt, Hadi was appointed an officer in the Terengganu Islam Foundation from 1977 to 1978. At the same time, he was also elected president of the Kuala Terengganu chapter of the Malaysia Muslim Youth Movement or Abim (Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia).
Young Turks
He began to be involved in PAS politics in 1964 when he was only 17 years old. In 1977, he first joined the top leadership of PAS as a central committee member. In the early 1980s, he teamed up with the late Fadzil Noor and Nik Aziz Abdul Aziz to replace the conservative nationalist leadership of Asri Muda. The power struggle ended with the victory of the 'Young Turks' and an ideological re-orientation of PAS from a 'left-wing' of Umno to an Islamic alternative to Malay nationalism.
After Fadzil took over as PAS president in 1983, Hadi was made his deputy. The duo complimented each other in a yin-yang setup, one flexible while the other, firm. Both, however, share the same concerns and ideals.
Parliamentary or electoral politics was not really smooth for Hadi, though. In his foray into electoral contest in 1978, he lost by a 64-vote margin to an Umno candidate in the state constituency of Marang. However, he defeated his rival in the 1982 general election in the same constituency by a majority of 320 votes.
In the 1986 general election, he retained his state seat but lost in his parliamentary bid. The 1986 general election was a disaster for PAS because it was attacked by Umno for "selling out Malays to non-Malays" for its publicly stated anti-NEP and anti-(Malay) nationalism positions, as well as its initiative to hold dialogues with Chinese community leaders, especially Dong Jiao Zong, the influential umbrella organisation made up of the United Chinese School Committees Association of Malaysia (Dong Zong), and United Chinese School Teachers Association of Malaysia (Jiao Zong).
However, in the 1990, 1995 and 1999 general elections, Hadi not only won and retained his parliamentary seat, but also maintained his grip on the state constituency.
Above all, in the aftermath of the sacking and arrest of Anwar, Hadi provided a crisis leadership to angry Muslims all over the country, like a rock in a stormy sea.
To his detractors and cynics, he exploited the Anwar saga to his and PAS' advantage. From a perspective of political science, he has given the mass anti-Umno and anti-Mahathir energy, emotion and sentiment, a democratic, constitutional and peaceful platform.
Like Fadzil, Hadi did not necessarily agree with Anwar's politics in Umno, but that has not deterred him from lending a helping hand to a persecuted friend, fellow Muslim, Malaysian and human being. In fact, it has always been a tradition of PAS to provide a platform and offer protection to Umno dissidents, including Mahathir when he was sacked by Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj and demonised as a 'Malay extremist' in the aftermath of the 1969 general election.
Love or loath him, Hadi must certainly be evaluated with the longer perspective and broader context of politics in Malaysia in mind, as well as with psychological depth and width.
JAMES WONG WING ON is chief analyst of Strategic Analysis Malaysia (SAM) which produces the subscriber-based political report, Analysis Malaysia . Wong is a former member of parliament (1990-1995) and a former columnist for the Sin Chew Jit Poh Chinese daily. He read political science and economics at the Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. While in Sin Chew , he and a team of journalists won the top awards of Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) for 1998 and 1999.