Tunisian Leader in Awe of Malaysia's Success

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 (Bernama) -- The founder and leader of the Ennahda Party in Tunisia , Rachid Ghannouchi said he was in awe of Malaysia’s success being among the top 20 economies in the world despite having a small population. "Malaysia has only 30 million people, but is able to be among the top 20 countries in the world economy. “The situation in Malaysia is more complicated than in Tunisia, because Malaysia only has a population of 60 percent Muslims. Tunisia has to learn from Malaysia,” he said. He was responding to questions on his visit to Malaysia and meeting with Prime Minister Najib Razak in a special talk show with the title "Political and Economic Situation in Tunisia", at Nessma TV, in Tunisia, Wednesday. Ghannouchi said Malaysia proved that Islam was able to leap forward with economics and technology. He also said that Malaysian women were very religious and very active in politics, economy and culture. Ghannouchi, 76, is a prominent Islamic thinker who lived in exile for 22 years during the dictatorial reign in Tunisia. -- BERNAMA