Quotes from Mahathir Mohamad

I achieved too little result from my principal task, the task of making my race a race that is respected, a race that is honourable, a race that is highly regarded.

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 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.

I expect every prime minister to have his own imprint.

When you have a prime minister who is corrupt, then you can be sure that a country cannot be anything else but corrupt.

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.

Money is not something you just print. It must be backed by something, either good economy or gold.

Running a democratic country is one of the most difficult things for any government.

MH370 is a Boeing 777 aircraft. It was built and equipped by Boeing. All the communications and GPS equipment must have been installed by Boeing. If they failed or have been disabled, Boeing must know how it can be done.

I've had quite a long time in government, and I've learned a few things.

We all abhor terrorists, but we have to treat them as dangerous to all of us, not to any one particular country.

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.

I don't believe that you should punish the people of Iraq because you don't like their leader. Saddam Hussein is not being punished. He's fat, and he is eating enough food and living in palaces. But his people are punished by denying them food and medicine.

I'm followed everywhere - it has become normal for me.

Forcing some countries to accept democracy is something that should not be done.

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.

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.

Jewish stinginess and financial wizardry gained them commercial control of Europe and provoked anti-Semitism, which waxed and waned in Europe throughout the ages.

I cannot accept this country being destroyed by selfish people who only think about themselves.

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.

Looking back now, I realise why, as prime minister of Malaysia, I was described as a dictator. There were many things I did which were typically dictatorial.

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.

The Commonwealth is a mixture of developing and developed world, in which the developed countries were very influential and their policies hold sway most of the time.

As a doctor, you are out on call most nights, so you don't get continuous sleep, and that becomes something that is familiar to you. So, working hard doesn't bother me.