Malaysiakini founders and opposition politician Abdul Hadi Awang are among the most powerful Malaysians, according to Asiaweek magazine in its annual special dubbed Asia's 50 most powerful people.

Other Malaysians on the list are Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, business mogul T Ananda Krishnan and UN special envoy to Burma Razali Ismail.

Abdul Hadi who is PAS deputy president and Terengganu mentri besar was ranked seventh while malaysiakini founders took the 18th spot. Ananda was ranked 29, Mahathir 39, and Razali 41.

The most powerful man in Asia, said the regional weekly's panel of editors, is leader of the Falun Gong spiritual movement, Li Hongzhi for his ability to built from scratch a movement numbering in the tens of millions and strike fear among the communist leadership in China.

According to Asiaweek , this year's list, which is the magazine's sixth annual ranking of the region's 50 most powerful people, was based on those who had changed the face of Asia through the revolution in communications. It added that 35 of last year's Power 50 elite - many of them old-style politicians and tycoons - were off the list

"Forget about power coming from the barrel of a gun or even a barrel of money. The communications revolution is changing who calls the shots. In all the rapid, often violent changes that have swept across Asia in the past 20 years, none has shaken the region more than the revolution in communications.

"Asia's elders - its political, social and business leaders - had long clung to the strictly vertical, top-down communication pattern handed down over the centuries but the advent in the past five years of the Internet, e-mail, and mobile phones and the continued blossoming of satellite broadcasting have flattened that structure, said Asiaweek .

Practices what he preaches

The magazine described Abdul Hadi, 53, as being the person who will head the country if PAS wins the next general elections in 2004.

"He practices what he preaches, spurning the chief minister's mansion to reside in the small village house in which he was raised. For a growing number of Malay voters, disillusioned by cronyism, corruption and crass materialism, that example speaks louder than any words," said Asiaweek .

Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan and chief executive officer Premesh Chandran are credited for setting up the country's "only credible, independent voice" and being "a thorn in the side of the establishment".

"The mainstream media rarely publish articles critical of the powers-that-be. Less compliant organs are aligned to opposition political parties. That leaves web pioneer malaysiakini as the country's only credible and independent voice."

The magazine described billionaire Ananda as a communications baron who is "trying to become Southeast Asia's answer to (media baron) Rupert Murdoch".

Asiaweek said the mogul's Measat Broadcast Network Systems offered high-quality alternatives to stodgy government programmes over 24 television and eight radio channels.

Out of tune

Meanwhile on Mahathir, Asiaweek said the premier was showing signs of weakening after having overseen the country's remarkable economic growth while always staying ahead of his political enemies.

"The jailing of his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, invigorated the opposition, and even his own party members have criticised him for getting in the way of reform. More recently, Mahathir has brandished the race card once again.

"He has long given preference to the Malays, and argues that Chinese calling for a meritocracy are troublemakers. Though he says he aims to build a truly modern Malaysia, some young Malaysians say he is out of tune with the times."

The last Malaysian on the list, Razali Ismail, according to Asiaweek , had not only brought Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the country's military generals to the table but also "gotten them talking about a landmark agreement that could pave the way for a return to democracy in Burma".

Journalists ranked

Apart from malaysiakini , several other media practitioners were also included in this year's ranking, notably Philippine journalist Sheila Coronel who ranked 46.

"It was Coronel's Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism that helped bring down former president Joseph Estrada's administration by uncovering corrupt dealings," said Asiaweek .

At number 48 was editor-in-chief of India's news portal Tehelka.com, Tarun Tejpal, whose online newspaper secretly filmed government officials and military officers accepting bribes, leading to the downfall of a few key politicians.

While a little higher on the list was the owner of print media in Hong Kong and Taiwan, Jimmy Lai, who came in at 36.

However, a few politicians still made the cut, with both Chinese president Jiang Zemin and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in the top 10.

Other notable figures in the poll were Oscar-winning film director Ang Lee (3), "Love" virus creator Onel de Guzman (11), Indonesian Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri (15), Tibet spiritual leader Dalai Lama (21), international fugitive Osama bin Laden (23), Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew (30), US-Taiwanese singer Coco Lee (42) and Singaporean political activist James Gomez (44).