Former Malaysian strongman Mahathir Mohamad sowed the seeds of religious extremism that now rears its ugly head in the form of attacks against Christian churches there, his biographer Barry Wain says.

Church burning is symptomatic of religious politics seen in Malaysia today, Wain told a discussion at 
the launch of his book Malaysian Maverick — Mahathir Mohamad in Turbulent Times in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Religious extremism and corruption were some negative legacies left behind by the man who led Malaysia as prime minister for 22 years until 2003, the former editor of the Wall Street Journal Asia said “He didn’t necessarily create them, but they developed under his watch.”

In the past month, Malaysia has seen a spate of attacks against houses of prayer for religious minorities in the wake of the controversy over the use of the word “Allah” for God. The Malaysian government, which had insisted that the word only be used by Muslims, lost its case in the Supreme Court.

The book, published by Palgrave MacMillan, was jointly launched by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Kompas daily newspaper and The Jakarta Post.

Former senior diplomat Wirjono Sastrohandojo and senior journalist/former ambassador Sabam Siagian commented on the book at the discussion.

Wain said he was waiting for the Malaysian government to allow local sales of “Maverick”, which reviewers said gives an honest account of the man who turned Malaysia into a modern and wealthy country.