|
Malaysian King Salahuddin Dies at 75
KUALA LAMPUR, Nov. 21 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The King of Malaysia, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, has died at the age of 75 after weeks of complications following heart surgery, the government announced Wednesday.
Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said that Sultan Salahuddin died in Kuala Lumpur's Gleneagles private hospital at 11:57 A.M.
Salahuddin had been on breathing and kidney support machines after his condition deteriorated following the implant of a heart pacemaker two months ago, BBC's online service reported.
The king in Malaysia holds mostly ceremonial powers, and Salahuddin's death does not affect the functioning of the government.
Salahuddin assumed the throne in 1999 under a rotation system that chooses the constitutional monarch by secret ballot among the sultans of Malaysia's nine states.
Salahuddin was also sultan of Malaysia's Selangor state. Each sultan takes a five-year turn as monarch of this Southeast Asian nation.
If a monarch dies in office, the deputy king steps in until the sultans meet to choose a new monarch. In three previous cases where the king has died in office, including Salahuddin's father in 1960, the number two has been elected as the new king.
Terengganu state's sultan, Mizan Zainal Abidin, has been acting king since Salahuddin was hospitalized in early October.
Malaysia's Health Minister, Chua Jui Meng, said late Tuesday that the king had a pacemaker fitted at Singapore's Mount Elizabeth Hospital, but he suffered renal failure and his health deteriorated afterward, reported the Associated Press (AP).
When the king's breathing failed on November 17, he was placed on a ventilator and returned to Malaysia. He had two heart bypass operations in the United States, in 1994 and 1997.
In a nationally televised address, Mahathir declared Thursday a national holiday. A seven-day mourning period was declared and Malaysians were urged to fly their flags at half-staff.
"I'm very much saddened because he has been a good friend and we were very close,'' Mahathir told reporters after the announcement.
On Thursday, Salahuddin's body will be laid in state at the national mosque, state palaces and other locations before he is interred at Malaysia's royal mausoleum with other former monarchs.
Malaysia inherited the constitutional monarchy system from Britain, which ruled as the colonial power until independence was granted in 1957. The king is head of state, but the power to govern resides with the federal Parliament and the Prime Minister.
But for ethnic Malay Muslims, who make up more than 60% of Malaysia's 23 million people, the king is the supreme upholder of Malay tradition.
Born on March 8, 1926, Salahuddin is survived by his wife, Siti Aishar, 29, whom he married in 1990, 10 sons and 4 daughters from 4 previous marriages.
|
