I have just finished reading "Long Walk to Freedom", Nelson Mandela's exhilarating memoirs. It is indeed an epic, tracing the destiny of a great freedom fighter who "emulates the few great political leaders, such as Lincoln and Gandhi" (Sunday Times, London).

Having digested the remarkable 751-page autobiography, it is inevitable for me as a politically conscious Malaysian to draw parallels of Mandela's tribulations with the reformasi movement in our own country following the harrowing events of September 1998.

Although the South African situation is not exactly similar, I believe there are many lessons to be learnt, especially by Anwar Ibrahim and Parti KeADILan Nasional from the experiences of Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress (ANC).

One aspect that is particularly relevant to current developments is how Mandela repositioned his role and ceased to be active in party matters once his free colleagues took over the leadership of the ANC upon his imprisonment.

I am among the many who have always regarded Anwar to this day as a great man, both in his leadership and personality. As one who have suffered and sacrificed willingly for the cause of justice and the struggle against corruption, he has undoubtedly proven his credentials as a true people's champion.

Since his incarceration and the subsequent formation of KeADILan, I have heard rumours that Anwar is still dictating terms in the party. This is despite the fact that the party has formally endorsed a leadership in which his role has been defined as, very appropriately, adviser to the party.

I am quite surprised and somewhat disappointed that, upon reading Marina Yusoff's letter as published in malaysiakini ("[#1]Marina wrote a scathing letter to Chandra[/#]", June 27), this rumour seems to have been confirmed. In Marina's account, Anwar seemed to have made appointments and given instructions to KeADILan leaders, including herself.

While I have the highest regards for Anwar, I think it is neither in his interest nor in KeADILan's that he should meddle in affairs which he obviously do not have the adequate physical capacity (being in jail) to fully comprehend and make informed judgements on. As I observed in the Mandela-ANC relationship, an incarcerated ex-leader can advise but not dictate. The responsibility for all decisions is ultimately shouldered by those formally in charge.

In the beginning of his 27 years in prison, Mandela wrote in "Long Walk to Freedom":"I was now on the sidelines, but I also knew I would not give up the fight. I was in a different and smaller arena, an arena for whom the only audience was ourselves and the oppressors. We regarded the struggle in prison as a microcosm of the struggle as a whole. We would fight inside as we would outside."

Mandela graciously accepted his limited role as a freedom fighter within the prison environment while the ANC was run by his exiled colleagues lead by Oliver Tambo. Even when he became the most prominent icon of the anti-apartheid struggle, he was careful never to overstep the line, limiting his role to giving advice or personal views to his colleagues outside the prison.

In the later years when the authorities realised that they would eventually have to release him, Mandela always made it clear that final decisions of negotiations are the prerogative of the formal leadership of the ANC, not his.

As it turned out, Mandela and his prison colleagues fought for prison rights, and when conditions improved, they would spend their time writing and learning, with many of them earning university degrees. (Ahmad Kathrada, one of Mandela's more trusted colleagues, earned no less than four Bachelor's degrees from the University of South Africa while in prison. See [#2]www.anc.org.za/people/kathrada.html[/#])

By not involving himself with affairs of the mainstream struggle, Mandela did not take away any of the greatness in his leadership; in fact, he demonstrated that a hallmark of a truly great leader is to know and observe the limits of one's leadership domain.

If it is true that Anwar has been dishing out instructions and directives from prison to KeADILan leaders, I think this is not the wisest of strategies. It may even be possible that this is one of the reasons for the reported problems within the KeADILan leadership.

I could imagine the confusion and the dilemma of the KeADILan leadership when various leaders seek out and receive directives (instead of advice) whenever they have the rare opportunity of meeting Anwar in court or prison. Anwar and those in KeADILan who feel compelled to take instructions from him should take heed of Mandela's example.

In this respect, I must laud KeADILan deputy president Dr Chandra Muzaffar for bravely and eloquently spelling out the advisory role that Anwar should be playing, even though it may be against prevailing popular sentiments. ("[#3]Saya bukan hamba Anwar[/#]", 16 Jun).

If there is some truth in Marina accussing Dr Chandra of not submitting to Anwar's instructions, he has nothing to be ashamed of. Indeed, this is another hallmark of great leaders, as Mandela further emphasised in the book: "As a leader, one must sometimes take actions that are unpopular, or whose results are not known for years to come."

As we have known, Dr Chandra's integrity is impeccable. He has been imprisoned, harassed, sacrificed his academic career, and generally suffered in his fight for justice and freedom. There is little reason to doubt the sincerity of this intelligent and articulate leader, including his loyalty to Anwar as a colleague in the struggle. He has no financial or business interest to think of, and no glittering highrise tower (Chandranara, so to speak) to complete.

So if KeADILan members were to choose between him and his current critic Marina, there would be little difficulty in seeing who is most likely to falter in the long and arduous struggle of the party.

I personally believe that the young KeADILan leadership is collectively capable of steering the party's struggle to greater heights. Anwar will undoubtedly play a very important role, but not in the mainstream organisational operation. He will have to learn to trust the new breed of politicians taking charge of KeADILan.

Mandela himself never doubted the ability of his colleagues who escaped capture to lead the ANC on their own. On many occasions he disagreed with them and was overruled. He admitted his mistakes and never failed to recognise the abilities, achievements and goodness in others, even his adversaries. In the end, he always insisted that the anti-apartheid struggle was never his alone but the collective struggle of the ANC and its allies within South Africa and throughout the world.

While efforts to seek justice for Anwar should be relentlessly pursued, KeADILan must move on from under his shadows. I believe it can and it will.



AZIZAN ABDULLAH is an academic in a local university.