Malaysian Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim Arrested for Sodomy

Source: blogywoodbabes.blogspot.com

Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim arrested for Sodomy Again

Mr Anwar is a key figure in a resurgent Malaysian opposition

Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim has been arrested in connection with allegations of sodomy, a crime in the Muslim country, made by a 23 year old male aide.

Mr Anwar spend the night in custody in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, following his arrest by armed police near his home earlier, his lawyer said.

The arrest came shortly before Mr Anwar was due to give a statement to police over the sodomy allegations, which he denies.

Anwar Ibrahim was sent to Hospital Kuala Lumpur to undergo a DNA test at 8.30pm yesterday, after a 6 hours marathon police questioning.

Outside the KL Police Headqurters, Anwar’s supporters were chanting slogans such as ‘reformasi’ and ‘Bantah Tangkap Anwar’. A lady by the name of Norazinan was arrested by the police which caused a bit of commotion, but the situation manged to calm down later.

The former deputy PM says they are aimed at ending his political comeback.

“Political murder!” cried Azizah Ismail, wife of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, accusing the ruling United Malay National Organization (UMNO).

Once more, Datuk Anwar, former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, is at the center of controversy in Malaysia. In the process of consolidating his power base to challenge the ruling party, UMNO, Datuk Anwar was recently accused of sodomy by his 23-year-old aide, Saiful Bukhari Azlan. To spice up the already intriguing scenario, Azlan is known to have close ties with current Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak.

The move is likely to exacerbate the political tensions that have emerged since the opposition’s unprecedented gains in the general election of March 2008.

Tian Chua, information chief for Mr Anwar’s People’s Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat), said his leader appeared to be in good spirits:

“He’s quite cheerful. He’s fresh, relaxed and hoping this will be over soon.”

PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, who was arrested yesterday, was freed on police bail at 9.45am.

After being released from police custody, he immediately headed back to his house in Bukit Segambut, Kuala Lumpur where he called a press conference at 2pm.

However, Anwar was not charged but will have to report back to the police in a month's time on Aug 18.

Earlier this morning, his lawyer Sankara Nair told reporters outside the Kuala Lumpur police headquarters where Anwar was held overnight that the politician would be released by 1pm.

"I received a call from one of the investigation officers and they agreed to grant Anwar police bail," said Sankara who arrived at the police headquarters at 9am.

he lawyer went into the building after briefly speaking to about 50 journalists who were waiting outside. With Sankara is another lawyer, R Sivarasa, who is also PKR vice-president and Subang parliamentarian.

At 9.30am, Anwar's wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail accompanied by her daughters arrived in a car and they were seen going into the police headquarters.

A suspect can be freed from police custody under the police bail but will have to report back at a specified date where the police have the option to procure charges.

Armed police

Mr Anwar has been in a tense stand-off with police since a former male aide accused him of sodomy two weeks ago.

The manner in which they surrounded our vehicle, it put a lot of fear and intimidation into us Sankara Nair Lawyer for Anwar Ibrahim

Sodomy, even between consenting adults, is punishable by 20 years’ imprisonment in Malaysia.

The 60-year-old opposition leader had been scheduled to report to police on Wednesday to be interviewed over the allegations.

But an hour before the meeting, armed police wearing balaclavas took him into custody outside the gates of his home, his lawyer said.

“The manner in which they surrounded our vehicle, it put a lot of fear and intimidation into us,” Sankara Nair said.

Mr Nair added that he did not know how long his client would be held in custody. He quoted police as saying they needed to take further statements.

Deputy National Police chief Ismail Omar said Mr Anwar was being questioned at police headquarters.

“We have to record his statement to complete our investigations,” he told the French news agency AFP. “Once the facts are in we can make a decision.”

Police can detain the opposition leader for 24 hours, after which they must apply for a court order for further detention.

Severe back pain

Soon after the release, Sivarasa said Anwar had complained of back pain after spending the night on a "cold cement floor" last night.

"He was lying on a slab of cement the whole of last night in a cell and he needs emergency medical treatment," Sankara told AFP, adding that he required an injection to control the pain.
Anwar is currently resting at home while a horde of reporters, including the foreign media, are waiting outside. Earlier they saw the opposition leader being driven through the gates of his suburban home in a black four-wheel drive.

Since then, there has been an endless stream of visitors and well-wishers.

At about 10.45am, Wan Azizah and her eldest daughter Nurul Izzah - both of whom are parliamentarians - left the house for Parliament.

"My husband is in pain," the PKR president told reporters before leaving.

Anwar, a former deputy premier who seeking to mount a political comeback after being sacked and jailed on sodomy and corruption charges a decade ago, was arrested by balaclava-clad police commandos in dramatic scenes yesterday.

In exclusive photos taken by Chinese daily Nanyang Siang Pau, Anwar could be seen being ushered into a white 4WD by about six balaclava-clad police officers (left).

He has rejected the allegations levelled by 23-year-old former aide Mohamad Saiful Bukhari Azlan as a conspiracy to prevent him from ousting the government, which was weakened by unprecedented losses in March elections.

His DNA samples provided before

Police commandos swooped on his vehicle as he approached his home on yesterday, an hour before he was due to appear voluntarily for interrogation.

He was taken to police headquarters and underwent a marathon six-hour questioning session before being taken to hospital for a medical examination, where his lawyers said he refused to give a DNA sample.

"We allowed a superficial medical exam but there was no DNA supplied. They already have Anwar's DNA samples from the last time," Sankara said.

Opposition leaders have hailed his release but said he should never have been arrested as he had already agreed to be questioned by police over the allegations.

"We are happy that he is released but we still maintain there is a conspiracy against him and we don't know what the government will do next," said PKR deputy president Syed Husin Ali.

Anwar not given police report

Wan Azizah, who is Permatang Pauh MP, later spoke to reporters at the Parliament lobby about her husband's condition.

“He came back in pain, fatigue, and was very tired and we had asked a doctor to come and he was given an injection.

“He had nothing to sleep on last night. It was a cemented lock-up. I'd given him a towel, at least he had something to lie on.”

Wan Azizah revealed that the police had wanted to question Anwar further this morning.

“He has already given his statement (to the police), but this morning he said the police wanted to continue with the statement.

“This was not right - after he gave his statement (yesterday), he asked three times, 'Is it okay, it there anything else you want to know?'”

Wan Azizah also said Anwar was not given a copy of the police report made by his accuser, Saiful.

“We don't really know the full allegations. But the lawyers said, 'If they don't want us to give us, fine. Just read us what the contents are'

Political challenge

Mr Anwar’s arrest will be seen as provocative by Malaysian opposition groups.

Police used tear gas and water cannon against Mr Anwar’s supporters in 1998

When he was arrested on similar charges 10 years ago, his supporters staged large demonstrations.

A BBC correspondent in Kuala Lumpur, Robin Brant, says it is almost certain that the same thing will happen again now.

The allegations come only weeks after Mr Anwar said he was in a position to launch a challenge to the ruling coalition, with the help of government defectors.

The opposition leader made his claim at a time when Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi is already under intense pressure to resign over poor election results and high fuel prices.

Anwar Ibrahim has been freed on bail after spending a night in custody.

Police arrested Dr Anwar on Wednesday in connection with sodomy accusations.

He left police headquarters accompanied by his wife and daughters.

The People's Justice Party Information chief, Tian Chua, has told Radio Australia's Asia Pacific program the arrest has set the stage for a political showdown between the government and supporters of Dr Anwar, who have dismissed the sodomy allegations as a conspiracy to prevent him and the opposition from seizing power.

"We have seen that police have been mobilised on the streets and we have even a joint exercise between the military and the police, and this is unprecedented," he said.

"And a few of us have been called by police for recording statements on our previous demonstrations activities. So all these are signs towards a closing up of the democratic space."

Dr Anwar has said he is poised to seize power from Premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi with the help of government defectors, after his opposition alliance claimed one third of parliamentary seats and five states in March elections.

In 1998, Dr Anwar was sacked as deputy premier and jailed on sodomy and corruption allegations, which he also maintains were politically motivated.

He was freed from prison in September, 2004, after six years in custody, when the country's top court quashed his conviction and nine-year jail sentence for sodomy.

The same court later refused to hear a new appeal against his conviction and six-year sentence for corruption.

He was barred from holding political office until this year.

Mr Abdullah has said he will leave office in 2010, defying pressure to step down this December.

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Anwar bin Ibrahim (born August 10, 1947 in Cherok Tok Kun, Penang, Malaysia) is a former deputy prime minister and finance minister of Malaysia. Early in his career, he became a protégé of the former prime minister of Malaysia, Mahathir bin Mohamad, but subsequently emerged as the most prominent critic of Mahathir's administration.

In 1999, he was sentenced in a highly controversial trial to six years in prison for corruption, and in 2000, to another nine years for alleged homosexual acts. However, in 2004, Malaysia's highest court, the Federal Court reversed the second conviction and he was released.

Anwar is the only Malaysian to ever make it into Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world. He is also one of the signatories of A Common Word Between Us and You, an open letter by Islamic scholars to Christian leaders, calling for peace and understanding.