Anwar Ibrahim and child on 26 March 2004.
Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim (born August 10, 1947) is a former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia who is best known for his imprisonment. Before his incarceration, he was being groomed for the post of Prime Minister by the then Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.
The early years
Anwar was born in Cherok Tok Kun, a village on the mainland side of the northern Malaysian state of Penang to a hospital porter. He was educated at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar and the University of Malaya, where he read Malay studies.
In 1971, as a student, Anwar founded a Muslim students organisation, Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Islam Malaysia (PKPIM). He was also elected President of the Malaysian Youth Council or Majlis Belia Malaysia (MBM).
In 1974, he was arrested during in relation to student protests against rural poverty and hunger. There were rumours at the time that farmers in the village of Baling were experiencing famine; however, they were never substantiated. Anwar was imprisoned under the Internal Security Act which allows for detention without trial. He spent twenty months in the Kamunting detention camp for political prisoners.
Groomed for leadership
In 1982, Anwar, the founding leader of a youth Islamic organisation called Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM), shocked his liberal supporters by joining the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), led by Mahathir who had become prime minister in 1981.
Various ministerial posts
He moved up the political ranks quickly: his first ministerial office was that of Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports in 1983; after that, he headed the agriculture ministry in 1984 before becoming Minister of Education in 1986. It is worth noting that all Prime Ministers of Malaysia after the first have been Education Minister at one time or another.
Meanwhile, he also became more important in the party. In 1984, he was elected Leader of UMNO Youth and in 1986, became a Vice-President of UMNO.
Minister of Finance
In 1991 he became Minister of Finance. In 1993, he became Mahathir's Deputy Prime Minister after winning the Deputy Presidency of UMNO against Tun Ghafar Baba .
In the early 1990s, he was being groomed to succeed Mahathir bin Mohamad as prime minister. Mahathir frequently alluded in public to his 'father-son' relationship with Anwar; for several months in early 1997, Mahathir appointed Anwar to be acting Prime Minister while Mahathir took a two-month holiday. Towards the end of the 1990s, the 'father-son' relationship between Mahathir and Anwar began to deteriorate, triggered by their conflicting views on governance. Issues such as how Malaysia would respond to a financial crisis were often at the fore-front of this conflict.
Financial crisis
During the Asian financial crisis in 1997 Anwar, in his capacity as finance minister, responded to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) plan for recovery which meant a restructuring of the economy involving opening up to greater foreign investment and competition. He also instituted an austerity package that slashed government spending by 18%, cut ministerial salaries and deferred major investment projects. Large-scale infrastructure development projects known as "mega projects" were set back as well, despite being a cornerstone of Mahathir's plans for developing the nation. These measures aroused bitter opposition from Mahathir. It also angered many affected business figures some of whose business empires had developed through exclusive government contracts, cheap credit from public funds or commercial sources backed by government guarantees, non-transparent concessions and various other forms of rent seeking. In particular, Tun Daim Zainuddin , the powerful Treasurer of UMNO and Executive Director of the NEAC, owned large holdings of Malaysian banks and other businesses that would be vulnerable to such actions. Daim was a close confidante of Mahathir (both being from the same town) had been the Finance Minister before Anwar. Daim was targeted by Anwar's proxies as a means to discredit Mahathir.
Although many Malaysian companies faced the threat of bankruptcy, Anwar declared: "There is no question of any bailout. The banks will be allowed to protect themselves and the government will not interfere." Anwar advocated a free market approach, sympathetic to foreign investment and trade liberalisation, whereas Mahathir favored currency and foreign investment controls, blaming unchecked speculation, George Soros and an international Zionist conspiracy (among other things) for the shrinking economy.
In 2004 Mahathir admitted that 'I have always been able to stand up against the people who challenge my leadership and I have won. And I believe that even against Anwar, I would have won'. He stated at the same time that he had sacked Anwar for moral reasons and the sacking had nothing to so with disagreements over IMF issues. [Straits Times, Singapore 12Oct2004]
In 1998 Newsweek magazine named Anwar the "Asian of the Year." That year, matters between Anwar and Mahathir came to a head around the time of the quadrennial UMNO General Assembly, in June. The Youth wing of UMNO, headed by Anwar's associate, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (also a member of ABIM), gave notice that it would initiate a debate on 'cronyism and nepotism'. In light of the recent fall of President Suharto of Indonesia, known for embezzling money from the Indonesian treasury, this was widely interpreted as a proxy attack on Mahathir and his tenure as Prime Minister. The response was swift, Mahathir issued lists of 'cronies' who had benefited from government share allocations and privatizations. To the chagrin of Anwar and his allies, several of them were on the list, including Anwar and Zahid.
Precursor of the corruption and sodomy cases
At the General Assembly, a book, 50 Dalil Kenapa Anwar Tidak Boleh Jadi PM ("50 Reasons Why Anwar Cannot Become Prime Minister") was circulated containing graphic sexual allegations as well as accusations of corruption against Anwar. This book carried the by-line Khalid Jafri, an ex-editor of a government controlled newspaper (Utusan Malaysia ), the editor-in-chief of a failed magazine (Harian National ) and an undischarged bankrupt. In a country where printing presses are licensed by the government, it had strong implications regarding the involvement of Mahathir and his cronies. In 2004, Khalid Jaffri was conferred the Darjah Mulia Seri Melaka (DMSM) which carries the title of "Datuk" (the Malaysian equivalent of British title, 'sir') . Khairuddin Hassan, distributor of the books was awarded an award with the title datuk paduka previously. State titles are awarded based on the recommendation of the government.
Shortly thereafter, Anwar obtained a court injunction to prevent further distribution of the book and filed a defamation action against the author. However, one day after the court granted an interlocutory injunction against distribution of the book, it was found in the standard pack handed out to all delegates to the General Assembly.
In July 1998, a visit by the Indonesian opposition leader Amien Rais led to more pointed comparisons of Malaysia and Indonesia. Domestic critics accused Mahathir of tolerating cronyism, and the international financial press and the IMF demanded greater transparency in government and UMNO-managed enterprises.
In August, police charged the author of the "50 Reasons" book with malicious publishing of false news. In September, the judge who had banned the book's distribution was transferred to a lower court despite being a senior judge, further raising concerns among the public about the independence of the judiciary.
On August 12, an associate of Anwar, K.S. Nallakaruppan, was arrested and charged with illegal possession of 125 live bullets. It was later found that these bullets were leftover rounds from a previously licensed firearm. He had been named in the "50 Reasons" book as a man who arranged secret Censored page trysts for Anwar — later in court affidavits, this accusation would be leveled against him, along with other allegations such as possession of state secrets. [1] http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/malaysia98/anwar-chronology.htm [2] http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/98/0828/cs_1_malaysia.html For owning live ammunition, Nallakaruppan was charged under the ISA, which permits a death sentence if found guilty. He was found guilty on February 3 1999 by High Court judge Arifin Jaka , who was also hearing a case against Anwar, and sentence to 42 months in jail. Nallakaruppan was freed on August 10 after a successful appeal against the ruling. [3] http://www.tamil.net/list/1999-08/frm00285.html
Reformasi days
Anwar was fired from the Cabinet on September 2, 1998, amid police reports that he was under investigation. The following day, he was expelled from UMNO. On September 14, Dr. Munawar Anees , Anwar's former speechwriter, and Sukma Darmawan Sasmitaat Madja , Anwar's adoptive brother and also a speechwriter of his, were arrested under suspicion of engaging in Censored page. Five days later, they were given a jail sentence of six months after pleading guilty to "unnatural sex" with Anwar. They later recanted their confessions, and appealed the sentence, claiming to have been coerced into entering a plea of "guilty". Dr. Anees made a statutory delcaration of how they were coerced into making a guilty plea [4] http://www.c2o.org/malaysia/democracy/reports/981203_stat_dec_munawar_01.htm
Two of Anwar's secretaries, Mohamad Ahmad and Mohamad Azmin Ali, were both held separately as part of police investigations into the "50 reasons" book. Both were later released.
On September 20, Anwar led a protest march in Kuala Lumpur demanding reformasi (economic and political reforms) and Mahathir's resignation. Anwar's attacks on the suspected nepotism of Mahathir's rule were fortified by widespread discontent over the perceived suppression of democratic rights in Malaysia. Critics questioned Anwar's actions, wondering why he had waited until he was sacked to publicly challenge Mahathir's actions. Some suggested that he had engaged in nepotistic and corrupt activities himself, and was using the issues to topple Mahathir. IT was also possible that he harbored hopes of replacing Mahathir although Anwar was no longer a member of UMNO and every prime minister had been an UMNO leader.
That night, Anwar's home was raided by armed men wearing face concealing masks. His arrest was announced several hours later, as were several of Anwar's supporters, including Zahid (Zahid was later released, and expelled from UMNO). The simultaneous capture in the night of political opponents had become the modus operandi of the regime and was a copy of the previous "ops lallang". A clear message was being sent out to the public that dissent would not be tolerated. However, the reformasi movement had gained a life of its own and street protests did not end with the storming of Anwar's household or the arrest of Anwar Ibrahim.
Charges of corruption and sodomy
On September 29, 1998 Anwar appeared in court, bruised and with a black-eye, and pleaded innocent to charges of corruption and sodomy. The Chief Inspector of Inspector Tan Sri Rahim Noor later admitted to beating him while he was blindfolded and chained to a prison bed, and was eventually sentenced to two months in jail. Anwar Ibrahim alleges that it was this beating that led to his future life-threatening back problems. The black eyed Anwar with one hand raised became a symbol of the political opposition appearing in many posters advocating reformasi.
His wife continued the political struggle starting the "National Justice Party" (Parti Keadilan Nasional, popularly known as Keadilan) which features an eye on a blue background as its logo, although the eye is drawn in such a manner that it can be construed to be two opposing crescent moons.
Anwar was accused of corruption relating to the abuse of power to initiate the police investigation into the author of the "50 Reasons" book which led to the author's arrest. He was also separately accused of sodomizing his government appointed driver, Azizan Abu Bakar. The trials were judged by Augustine Paul , a judge with no previous high court experience who had been transferred from the Malacca sessions court, as if made to order. The judge's only other achievement had been to author a textbook on evidence. The ranking judge in the court, who had granted an injunction of the book, was transferred out to a lower court in Shah Alam instead of being allowed to hear this case or being promoted to the appeals court as was normal procedure.
The lead prosecutor in the case was Abdul Gani Patail , the Senior Federal Counsel. Anwar's team of defence counsellors read like a "who's who" of the Malaysian legal community including such prominent lawyers as Christopher Fernando (the lead defence lawyer), Karpal Singh, S.N. Nair, Gurbachan Singh, Zulkifli Nordin, Pawanchek Merican and Kamarainiah Kamarulzaman. Many human rights groups and the Malaysian Bar Council held watching briefs during the trial. Members of the defence team alleged that various ones of their offices were broken into and many received anonymous threats.
During the trial Mahathir appeared on Malaysian television in a special appearance to clarify the arrest of his deputy. During this appearance he graphically described sodomy and mimed certain sexually explicit acts in front of a shocked nation.
Sentencing
Anwar was sentenced to six years in prison on April 14, 1999 for corruption and nine years in prison on August 8, 2000 for sodomy. The sentences were to be served concurrently. Similarly, Sukma was also imprisoned for his role in the alleged sodomy.
In a speech during the proceedings against him, Anwar explained why he what he believed to be the underlying motive behind his persecution. He told the court: "I objected to the use of massive public funds to rescue the failed businesses of his (Mahathir's) children and cronies."
Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch expressed some doubts about the fairness of the trials. [5] http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA280152003?open&of=ENG-MYS [6] http://www.hrw.org/press/1999/jun/anwar0610.htm .
Malaysia had seen communal race rioting on May 13, 1969, but nothing on a similar scale since. For the first time since 1969, large scale protests took to the streets of Kuala Lumpur with people of all races marching and taking up Anwar's battle cry of reformasi. For most it was a new experience and it had a festive atmosphere with parents bringing along their children. The concerned government responded with tear gas, baton charges and arrests. Order was enforced by calling in the FRU (Federal Reserve Unit) a para-military unit. Allegations were made that the PDRM (Royal Malaysian Police) and army may not have proved to be "reliable" in acting against fellow Malaysians whom they had been trained to protect. The western press responded by gleefully publishing picture after picture of protestors and their abuse at the hands of the FRU. Meanwhile Mahathir became ever more belligerent towards foreign interference stating, for example, "We should fry him. Al Gore does not love Malaysia nor its people. Al Gore and his government only wants to manipulate and control our country," in response to the American vice-president questioning whether Anwar had received a fair trial.
Anwar's wife, Dr. Wan Azizah Ismail, formed the National Justice Party, which based its platform on campaigning for Anwar's release, and his stated goal of reformasi. The party joined the Barisan Alternatif (Alternative Front) coalition, formed in response to the ruling Barisan Nasional (National Front).
General election
In the next election, the electorate voted the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition out of power in the state of Terengganu, and allowed the opposing Barisan Alternatif to make gains the likes of which had not been seen since the 1969 elections. Parti Islam SeMalaysia (the National Islamic Party, or PAS), a key party in the Barisan Alternatif, maintained its control of the state of Kelantan. Ironically, although it was the people in the city marching in the streets, most of the constituencies lost by the National Front were rural constituencies. The People's Justice Party garnered five parliamentary seats. However, despite a common goal to topple the National Front, the opposition was largely disunited with issues such as the eventual formation of an Islamic state being announced in the press as a major point of contention.
Rejected appeals
The following year, Anwar's corruption conviction was upheld by Malaysia's Court of Appeal. In July 2002, Anwar lost his final appeal against the corruption conviction in the Federal Court.
Anwar Ibrahim and police on 7 February 2002.
It is generally believed that Anwar's influence over the general public and politics in Malaysia has waned, except for a few dedicated followers of his — in the following general election, the ruling coalition under a new leader, Mahathir's successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, regained Terengganu and nearly captured Kelantan. By then, the Barisan Alternatif had crumbled, with the socialist opposition Democratic Action Party leaving the coalition, due to the differences with PAS over the formation of an Islamic state as part of the coalition platform. Before the election, the National Justice Party had changed its name to the People's Justice Party — it performed poorly in the election, only retaining a single parliamentary seat, that which belonged to Anwar's wife. Not surprisingly this was Anwar's old parliamentary seat of Permatang Pauh proving that in spite of his conviction, he still had the support of his old constituents.
It has been speculated that the Malaysian public was not ready for a multi-racial issue-based party but were instead stuck to the racially or religiously based parties they had grown up with. It is also possible that Malaysian voters were simply uneasy over the prospects of a political party perceived to be based on the issue of Anwar's release. However, without access to a free-press or established party newsletters such as PAS' Harakah or DAP's Rocket Keadilan had no way to effectively communicate its platform. Furthermore, many candidates fielded were professionals or social activists. Not many of them managed to connect with the grass roots, particularly given that they did not have any established party operatives. Also "safe" opposition seats were retained by various parties and keadilan was left to fight it out in National Front strong holds where chances of winning were slim and the political contest used as a means to embarrass various prominent members of the National Front.
Release from prison
On September 2 2004, a panel of three judges (Federal Court judges Datuk Abdul Hamid Mohamad, Datin Paduka Rahmah Hussain and Court of Appeal judge Tengku Datuk Baharuddin Shah Tengku Mahmud) overturned the sodomy conviction by 2 to 1, the objector being Rahmah. Sukma Darmawan's conviction was similarly overturned. The judgement was read out in the Federal Court located in the Palace of Justice, Putrajaya. Anwar credited Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for not interfering with the judicial process — a cloud had hung over the head of Badawi's predecessor, Mahathir, who had been accused of influencing the judiciary's handling of Anwar's case.
The court overturned the conviction based upon contradictions in the prosecution's case, which caused sufficient reason to doubt the case of the prosecution. The court affirmed their belief that Anwar was guilty, however — part of the verdict read, 'We find evidence to confirm that the appellants were involved in homosexual activities and we are more inclined to believe that the alleged incident at Tivoli Villa did happen.'
Anwar had already completed his sentence for corruption, with a lesser sentence being granted in exchange for good behaviour. Although the point was by now moot, his appeal on the corruption charges was scheduled for September 6, 2004. Under Malaysian law a person is banned from political activities for five years after the end of his sentence. Success in this appeal would allow him an immediate return to politics. On September 7, the court agreed to hear Anwar's appeal. Judge Abdul Malek Ahmad stated, "We have considered arguments and authorities, and we are of the view unanimously that we have the jurisdiction to hear the motion."
On September 15, a three-member panel consisting of Court of Appeal president Abdul Malek Ahmad and Federal Court justices Siti Norma Yaakob and Alauddin Mohd Sherif , ruled unanimously that its previous decision to uphold a High Court ruling that found Anwar guilty was in order, relegating Anwar to the sidelines of Malaysian politics until April 14, 2008. The only way out for Anwar would be for him to receive a pardon from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
During the period of detention he was allowed out at various times for various reasons such as to attend funerals. There is no provision in Malaysian law allowing for "compassionate leave" of prisoners, making his a special case.
At the time of his release, Anwar reportedly suffered from back problems, which his family claimed to be the result of specific abuse by the ex-police chief and systematic abuse during his incarceration, specifically his torture at the hands of the police chief during his remand custody. However, the UMNO-owned newspaper, the New Straits Times, reported in its September 6 issue that the injuries had actually been caused by a fall from a horse in 1993 during Anwar's tenure as deputy prime minister, why this injury had taken approximately 10 years to manifest itself was never quite explained in that article. His wife, a medical doctor specializing as an opthamologist, had indicated during his imprisonment that he required treatment for his condition which was best performed, at a clinic in Germany. The government refused, claiming that such treatment was readily available in Malaysia, offering medical treatment if necessary.
Anwar required assistance to walk, and was not seen walking unaided in public, after his release. Additionally supporters to various events were asked not to hug him. At every event the public were asked to "jangan goyang Datuk Seri" ("Do not shake/rock the Datuk Seri"). This was due to the many well wishers who were trying to hug Anwar. Despite the request of his handlers, Anwar himself hugged well wishers to his home in Damansara Heights.
Treatment in Munich
After his release he travelled to Munich for back treatment. The Saudi Arabian government had allegedly offered the use of a private plane and to bear the cost of his medical expenses but due to the pressure of time, Anwar declined the offer and flew to Germany on a commercial flight - having being granted permission to leave his first class seat in the reclined position during take off and landing due to his back condition. The Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi had earlier stated he was not aware of the offer of the Saudi Arabian government, and added that if it were true, the government would have been informed by the Saudis.
On the day of his release he was issued an international passport to allow him to travel. He was issued the travel document at immigration headquarters within an hour. The committed time to produce such a passport by the immigration department in its clients charter is 5 working days.
On the 4th of September 2004, Anwar Ibrahim flew off to the Alpha Klinik in Munich, Germany for surgery to his back using a standard Malaysian Airlines commercial flight. A flight directly to Munich was not available, so a transit occurred in Frankfurt onto a Lufthansa commercial flight.
Anwar's daughter received her university degree on the same day Anwar left for Germany. She graduated in electrical engineering and had taken one year off to cope with her father's troubles. During his departure for Germany, Anwar spoke to her in a recorded message, in front of the assembled crowd, stating: "I am sorry I cannot be there, I am very proud of you".
Anwar underwent micro surgery by Dr. Thomas Hoagland (head of spinal surgery at the Alpha Klinik) sucessfully on the 7th of September in a nearly 2 hour operation from 3PM to 4.40 PM Munich time. He offered to perform the procedue at no cost, stating that the procedure would normally cost 15,000 euros. Hoagland had been flown in by Anwar's family in 2001 to examine him while in prison.
2004
Anwar Ibrahim has spent his time after recovery attempting to and meeting various prominent people internationally. He met with Nelson Mandela and is attempting to meet with President Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia.
The Malaysian Prime Minister has cautioned foreign leaders from meeting with Anwar. [7] http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/sub/asia/story/0,5562,289118,00.html?
Awards Won
1998, Newsweek magazine, "Asian of the Year"
2004, TIME Asia Magazine, runner up for "Asia's Online Hero" behind Aung San Suu Kyi with 35.9% or 33,379 votes against the winners 40.4% or 37,617 votes.
External links
- Free Anwar Campaign http://www.freeanwar.com/
- Anwar Online: Reformasi http://members.tripod.com/~Anwar_Ibrahim/
- Malaysia Today http://www.malaysia-today.net/ online newspaper including a column by Anwar Ibrahim.
- Utusan Malaysia September 2, 2004 http://utusan.com.my/utusan/content.asp?y=2004&dt=0903&pub=Utusan_Express&sec=Fr
ont_Page&pg=fp_01.htm Anwar freed as court quashes sodomy conviction.
Last updated: 02-09-2005 06:49:57
Last updated: 05-03-2005 17:50:55
