Kuala Lumpur,     -- Prime Minister Najib Razak Thursday conveyed his condolences to the family of Abdurrahman Wahid and the people of Indonesia over the death of the former Indonesian president.

      The 69-year-old Indonesian leader, affectionately known as Gus Dur, died of Health complications in Jakarta yesterday evening.

           "Gus Dur's impact on shaping Indonesia cannot be understated. Both statesman  and scholar, he strove to bring about change and reform that embodied Islamic  values," Najib said of Gus Dur's legacy, in his blog www.1malaysia.com.my.

          "He was a man who was ahead of his time, and an adamant believer in the importance of tolerance and unity and in the need to protect the weak, including Minorities," he said.

          Najib said Gus Dur always pressed administrators to make processes simpler  for the benefit of the people.

          "From his leadership of the Nahdlatul Ulama to his founding of the Wahid Institute, his charitable work should also serve as an example for all to  follow," he added.

      "May his beliefs and values continue to thrive in others in his memory.". 

          Gus Dur served as Indonesia's fourth president, from 1991 to 2001, and was
      the founder of the Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB), an Islamic party.

-Antara, 01 January 2010-