Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad attended a gathering of some 40,000 people late yesterday to celebrate his ruling party's 57th birthday.

Mahathir is the president of the Umno, which was founded in 1946 to fight Malaysia's British colonial masters.

In his hour-long speech, the prime minister urged his countrymen to remain united against foreign colonisers, though Mahathir did not identify who they were.