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My Malaysia ordeal shows how religion can fuse with populist nationalism to silence dissent

  • Written by Ahmet T. Kuru, Professor of Political Science, San Diego State University
imageMalaysian Islamists rally in favor of sharia law on Nov. 20, 2023.Zahim Mohd/NurPhoto via Getty Images

I hadn’t expected my book tour in Malaysia to end with a confrontation with men who identified themselves as police in a Kuala Lumpur airport.

I arrived in the Muslim-majority country in early January 2024 to promote the Malay translation of...

Read more: My Malaysia ordeal shows how religion can fuse with populist nationalism to silence dissent

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