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”.
吉隆坡一座购物中心的四楼有一家“日式”面包店，选在这里会见东南亚最后一位大独裁者，实在让人有些摸不着头脑。我给一位马来西亚朋友发信息，告诉他我要在这里与现年91岁的马哈蒂尔•穆罕默德医生(Dr Mahathir Mohamad)共进午餐——马哈蒂尔曾以总理身份在马来西亚实行专制22年之久，即使早已离任，仍醉心于干预政治。疑团立即就解开了：“哈哈哈，这家餐馆是他的！”显然，这只是这位现在仍喜欢被称为“远见之父”的前总理名下连锁餐厅的其中一间而已。