Asia must have a liberal environment if it wants to attain 'cultural empowerment and human dignity', says Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
His remarks, made in an interview with Newsweek, revealed views that were markedly different from those of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, whom he is in line to succeed.
The 50-year-old said people in his generation would 'certainly like to see greater liberty, access to literature and knowledge and less censorship'.
They did not have 'an obsession about the need for order and political stability', he said.
But in a speech earlier this year, Dr Mahathir, 71, said developing countries needed political stability more than ever before.
'Liberal democracy may be good for some, but not for everyone. And I don't think, from what I have observed, it will work for everyone of us,' he said.