New York, NY, October 13, 1997...The Anti-Defamation League (ADL ) today said that a recent remark regarding Jews by the Malaysian Prime Minister is "consistent with his long record of anti-Semitism and belief in a Jewish conspiracy to bring about the downfall of Malaysia." The Prime Minister has since said he was misquoted.

It was reported that in an October 10 speech on the drop in the value of the Malaysian currency, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad stated, "We are Moslems and the Jews are not happy to see Moslem's progress. We may suspect that they have an agenda but we do not want to accuse them...If viewed from Palestine, the Jews have robbed Palestinians of everything but they cannot do this in Malaysia, so they do this." Mr. Mahathir has since said he was misquoted, saying, "I only made a statement, but the press went on to say that I was accusing the Jews. We cannot make such wild accusations. They will twist our arms. We are not making any accusations and will never make any accusations."

"The recent statements made by Prime Minister Mahathir come as no surprise," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director. "Indeed, they are consistent with his long record of anti-Semitism and belief in a Jewish conspiracy to bring about the downfall of Malaysia."

Previous statements by Prime Minister Mahathir include a comment in 1988 that the Western media is controlled by Jews, because "they have to bow to Zionist interests" and an accusation that "Jewish-owned" foreign publications are attempting to destabilize Malaysia. After an unfavorable 1986 article about Malaysia, Prime Minister Mahathir claimed the Wall Street Journal was controlled by Jews and part of a Zionist plot to overthrow his regime.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.