Previous Anwar Ibrahim
Source | Credit to : David Portnoy
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ANWAR IN EUROPE |
ANWAR IN INDIA | MUSLIM YOUTH LEADER | DEPUTY PM 1997 |
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Present Anwar Ibrahim 2008
Agence France-Presse – 7/17/2008 7:52 AM GMT

Malaysia’s Anwar says victim of ‘vendetta’
Entry: | vendetta | |
Speech: | noun | |
Synonyms: | dispute, feud, fight, gripe, quarrel |
Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said Thursday he was the victim of a “vendetta”, after being held overnight on sodomy accusations levelled by a young male aide. Anwar, who was released on bail, said he was treated like a “major criminal” and needed medical treatment after a night in a bare cell at Kuala Lumpur police headquarters which aggravated a back injury. “Dumped in a cell to sleep on a cold cement floor with nothing… that has exacerbated the pain,” said Anwar, who was arrested Wednesday by a team of police commandos.”I don’t deserve this — no Malaysian deserves this. Why treat me like a major criminal?” he told a press conference, adding that he was subjected to an examination which included the measuring of his genitals.”They have seen all my private parts. Of course I refused to be photographed, it could be on YouTube very soon! You mean I can trust the system?”Anwar rejected the allegations levelled by 23-year-old aide Mohamad Saiful Bukhari Azlan as another conspiracy, following the events of 1998 when he was sacked as deputy premier and jailed on sodomy and corruption counts.”It appears that the events of the last few days, the nature of my unwarranted arrest, my overnight incarceration which was actually absolutely unnecessary, were an act of personal vengeance against me,” he said.”They should not use this as a personal vendetta against me.”Anwar said he was being targeted because of allegations he has made against the attorney-general and chief of police over his treatment during his original trial.He has lodged a police report accusing them of manipulating evidence in an investigation into the severe beating he received when he was in police custody at the time.The 60-year-old opposition leader defended his decision not to give a DNA sample during Wednesday’s examination, saying he had no faith in the system after fabricated DNA evidence was used against him in his trial a decade ago.”My decision to refuse a DNA test is taken through advice of my lawyers and DNA experts,” he said.And he criticized the decision to arrest him, when he had agreed to face police interrogation at a meeting scheduled just an hour after he was picked up by police.
“I am disappointed with the way the police have handled this whole situation,” he said.
Anwar Ibrahim is well aware of the perils and pitfalls of Malaysian political life. Once tipped for the country’s highest office, he fell out with top leaders and was beaten, jailed and disgraced. Convicted and jailed Massive street demonstrations took place in 1999 when Mr Anwar was jailed for abuse of power.
But there were growing tensions between the two leaders, particularly over economic policy and, in September 1998, Mr Anwar found himself sacked and arrested over allegations of sexual misconduct.The trial which followed led to a six-year jail term for corruption. In 2000 he was found guilty on a second charge, of sodomy, and jailed for a further nine years, to be served concurrently with his other sentence. And as Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi’s popularity plummeted over ethnic tensions, inflation and corruption gripes, the opposition forces began to look like more of a credible force. Divisive figure Allegations notwithstanding, he cuts a controversial figure.
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