Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad will attend his farewell Southeast Asian summit in Cambodia next week, leaving a legacy as a strong-willed statesman and moderate Islamic leader in a region shaken by religious extremism and terrorist attacks.

Known as a West-basher for championing the interests of the developing world, Mahathir muted his criticisms of Washington and threw his support behind the US-led war against terrorism after the Sept 11 attacks in the US detaining 72 suspected Islamic militants since late last year.

On the economic front, he will be remembered for refusing to follow other Asean members who sought International Monetary Fund rescue packages during the 1997-98 financial crisis and instead imposed unorthodox currency controls that insulated Malaysia from monetary shocks.

With the exception of Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah who succeeded his father in 1967, the 76-year-old Mahathir is the longest serving leader in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), with 21 years at the helm.

Under Mahathir, Malaysia accelerated its shift from an agricultural backwater into a middleweight industrial centre producing electronics and cars.

He is the last leader from Asean's old guard, who once included the late Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines and former Indonesian ruler Suharto who was ousted in 1998.

Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew has become a senior minister and roving envoy since handing over the premiership to Goh Chok Tong in 1990.

Phnom Penh summit

Mahathir himself will hand the reins over to his deputy Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after hosting the Organisation of the Islamic Conference summit in October 2003, three months after marking 22 years in office.

He is likely to press home the need to identify the root causes of terrorism during the Nov 4-5 Asean summit in Phnom Penh after the bloody bomb blasts in Indonesia's Bali resort island brought the scourge to the region's doorstep, diplomats say.

"He will push for states to come out with general guidelines on what are the root causes of terrorism, which has been his mantra for the past one year," a diplomat told AFP .

The premier is also likely to urge Asean members to accede to an anti-terrorism pact signed in Kuala Lumpur in May by Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, he added.

Mahathir's vision of an East Asian Economic Grouping a powerful alliance with a market size of over two billion people in 13 countries will take shape during the summit, which also gathers leaders or high-ranking officials from China, Japan, South Korea and India.

He mooted the idea of an East Asian caucus over a decade ago but it was shot down by the US amid fears if could form a protectionist trade bloc. Asean last year endorsed a free trade area with China and agreed to explore plans to enlarge it to include South Korea and Japan.

Dr M's legacy

Mahathir has offered to host an Asean-plus-three secretariat but it was rejected in July by Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, who fear it would undermine the existing one in Jakarta.

"We hear he will call now for an Asean-plus-three bureau instead of a secretariat in Kuala Lumpur. This will be his last legacy before he steps down," a diplomat said.

The premier may also rally support for an ambitious RM9.5 billion trans-Asean railway linking Singapore to Kunming in China which has been stalled by a lack of funds, he added.

Malaysia will head the rail project secretariat for five years from early

The Malaysian doctor-turned-politician has been credited with Asean's unification, ignoring western pressure to embrace military-ruled Burma into the fold during Kuala Lumpur's chairmanship in 1997.

Laos was admitted at the same time and Cambodia was also to have been inducted to complete the regional integration during Asean's 30th anniversary bash but political infighting in Phnom Penh delayed its entry until 1999.

"He is the unifier of Southeast Asia. Asean will lose an eloquent statesman and a champion of the developing world," said Malaysian Institute of Strategic and International Studies chairman Noordin Sophie.

Singapore's Lee calls Mahathir a "fierce and dogged fighter," supporters hails him as a visionary and critics flayed his authoritarian methods.

But Mahathir bids farewell to the tune of his favourite song: "I did it my way." - AFP