ONE evening in mid-July Anwar Ibrahim was deep in the rubber-tapping state of Kelantan in northern Malaysia, urging a crowd of rural folk to vote for a devout fishmonger.

• 七月中旬的一个傍晚，大马北部采集橡胶闻名的吉兰丹州，安瓦尔.；易卜拉欣深入人群，呼吁一群乡巴佬为一位虔诚的鱼贩子投票。