How many people actually believed? that a sodomy charge against Malaysian opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim, was anything less than bizarre the first time round. Now the Malaysian government is trying the same thing again and as Reuters is reporting the Malaysian legal system is likely to become a laughing stock if he is prosecuted..
Reuters reports:
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim heads for trial on Tuesday on a charge of sodomy, placing the country’s courts under scrutiny again after his doubtful conviction for the same offence almost a decade ago.
Anwar was tried first on corruption charges and then for sodomy after his sacking as Deputy Prime Minister in 1998 amid a political feud with then premier Mahathir Mohamad.
His case drew a chorus of international criticism with then-U.S. Vice President Al Gore saying at the time that the trial “mocked international standards of justice.”
Although Malaysia’s top court ultimately overturned the conviction, doubts remain as to whether the 62-year-old Anwar, who represents the biggest political threat to the government that has run Malaysia for 52 years, will get a fair trial.
This time, he is charged with sodomising a male aide in a trial that has been dubbed “Sodomy 2” by the Malaysian media.
“For political cases, the public has grave concerns about the independence of the judiciary,” said Lim Chee Wee, vice president of the Bar Council of Malaysia. “There is also the upcoming Anwar ‘Sodomy 2’ trial where the presently available evidence suggests selective prosecution.”
Malaysia’s government has a long history of curbing the power of the judiciary, starting in 1988 when Mahathir sacked the country’s top judge amid a political row that could have seen the man who became the country’s longest serving premier removed.
The Anwar trials further undermined trust in the courts and public confidence in the judiciary ebbed further after a judicial appointments fixing scandal in 2007, prompting the government to initiate a judicial reform effort.
Full report at?? http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6100MW20100201
