Ports not meant to harm S'pore, says Mahathir
KUALA LUMPUR :Former premier Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia and Indonesia were not trying to harm Singapore's ports by building their own. They wanted only to grow their own economies, he adds.
In a letter to Utusan Malaysia, which was published yesterday, Tun Dr Mahathir said he was clarifying remarks about Kuala Lumpur opening up new ports after independence to reclaim 'wealth' that was being shipped through Singapore.
He had said in an interview with Utusan published on Sunday that Malaysia and Indonesia had the right to stop their 'exploitation', as Singapore had looked at the two countries as its hinterland.
'If we want to build our own ports with our own resources, why can't we? It is our right, we are not taking away their riches,' he had said in Mingguan Malaysia, the weekend edition of the Malay newspaper.
The interview with Utusan revolved around what Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said about him in the book Hard Truths To Keep Singapore Going.
In the book, Mr Lee said Dr Mahathir started the Port of Tanjung Pelepas in southern Johor to 'undercut' Singapore.
Mr Lee also said that when Jakarta wanted to privatise its main Tanjung Priok port, it refused to allow Singapore to come in, instead passing the job to Hutchison from Hong Kong.
Dr Mahathir, in his letter published yesterday, wrote: 'What Malaysia and Indonesia did was not sabotage, but competition. In the past, both countries' goods were exported through Singapore because its port could be used for big ships.
'Realising that shipping companies could contribute to the economy, both countries decided to develop their own ports to reap more benefits from the import-export trade.'
He had been asked in the interview with Utusan why Singapore was claiming that Malaysia and Indonesia were trying to sabotage the Republic.
Dr Mahathir added: 'Do free and independent countries have to maintain our coloniser's system, where Singapore remains the main port in South- east Asia?
'What is wrong with countries wanting to develop their own economy through the port industry? Now is this a threat to Singapore?'
KUALA LUMPUR :Former premier Mahathir Mohamad says Malaysia and Indonesia were not trying to harm Singapore's ports by building their own. They wanted only to grow their own economies, he adds.
In a letter to Utusan Malaysia, which was published yesterday, Tun Dr Mahathir said he was clarifying remarks about Kuala Lumpur opening up new ports after independence to reclaim 'wealth' that was being shipped through Singapore.
He had said in an interview with Utusan published on Sunday that Malaysia and Indonesia had the right to stop their 'exploitation', as Singapore had looked at the two countries as its hinterland.
'If we want to build our own ports with our own resources, why can't we? It is our right, we are not taking away their riches,' he had said in Mingguan Malaysia, the weekend edition of the Malay newspaper.
The interview with Utusan revolved around what Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said about him in the book Hard Truths To Keep Singapore Going.
In the book, Mr Lee said Dr Mahathir started the Port of Tanjung Pelepas in southern Johor to 'undercut' Singapore.
Mr Lee also said that when Jakarta wanted to privatise its main Tanjung Priok port, it refused to allow Singapore to come in, instead passing the job to Hutchison from Hong Kong.
Dr Mahathir, in his letter published yesterday, wrote: 'What Malaysia and Indonesia did was not sabotage, but competition. In the past, both countries' goods were exported through Singapore because its port could be used for big ships.
'Realising that shipping companies could contribute to the economy, both countries decided to develop their own ports to reap more benefits from the import-export trade.'
He had been asked in the interview with Utusan why Singapore was claiming that Malaysia and Indonesia were trying to sabotage the Republic.
Dr Mahathir added: 'Do free and independent countries have to maintain our coloniser's system, where Singapore remains the main port in South- east Asia?
'What is wrong with countries wanting to develop their own economy through the port industry? Now is this a threat to Singapore?'
