A “Japanese-style” bakery on the fourth floor of a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur is a curiously nondescript place to be meeting the last of the great Southeast Asian authoritarian leaders. I text a Malaysian friend to tell him where I’m having lunch with 91-year-old Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the autocratic prime minister for 22 years who, long after he left office, still likes to meddle in politics. The puzzle is quickly solved: “Hahaha, it’s his restaurant!” Apparently it is just one in a chain owned by the man who still likes to be referred to as the “father of vision”.
吉隆坡一座購物中心的四樓有一家「日式」麪包店，選在這裏會見東南亞最後一位大獨裁者，實在讓人有些摸不著頭腦。我給一位馬來西亞朋友發信息，告訴他我要在這裏與現年91歲的馬哈蒂爾•穆罕默德醫生(Dr Mahathir Mohamad)共進午餐——馬哈蒂爾曾以總理身份在馬來西亞實行專制22年之久，即使早已離任，仍醉心於干預政治。疑團立即就解開了：「哈哈哈，這家餐館是他的！」顯然，這只是這位現在仍喜歡被稱爲「遠見之父」的前總理名下連鎖餐廳的其中一間而已。