'Europeans greedy warmongers'
2003-06-19 10:23
Kuala Lumpur - Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad launched a vitriolic attack on the European race on Thursday, accusing them of warmongering, indiscriminate attacks on Muslims, greed and sexual deviancy.
Europeans, including "those who migrated and set up new nations in America, Australia and New Zealand", wanted "to control the world again", he said.
Predicting that he would be condemned as a "racist", the veteran Southeast Asian leader said he was "not anti-European. I have many friends and acquaintances who are Europeans".
"They are very clever, brave and have an insatiable curiosity," he said.
But "unfortunately they are also very greedy and like to take forcibly the territories and rights of other people."
In an obvious reference to the recent war on Iraq he said "they have demonstrated that they are ready to invent false allegations in order to go to war to kill children, old people, sick people", considering them "mere collaterals" who cannot stand in the way of their objectives.
Mahathir was speaking at the annual congress of his ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) for the last time before retiring in October after 22 years in power.
The leader of a moderate Muslim government, Mahathir said the September 11 2001 terrorist attack on the United States was "an excuse for the Anglo Saxon Europeans to return to their old violent ways.
"Their strategy to fight terrorism is through attacking Muslim countries and Muslims, whether they are guilty or not."
Just over a year ago Mahathir was invited to the White House to be thanked personally by President George W Bush for his support in the war on terrorism, but his strong opposition to the war in Iraq has seen relations sour.
Mahathir said Europeans also wanted to impose their cultural values on the world, including "unlimited freedom for the individual" and "the practice of free sex including sodomy as a right".
"Marriage between male and male, between female and female are officiallly recognised by them. What we call incest is not regarded as serious by them.
"The culture and the values which they will force us to accept will be hedonism, unlimited quest for pleasure, the satisfaction of base desires, particularly sexual desires. Our way of life must be the same as their way of life. Asian values do not exist for them."