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Opposition Member Says Anwar A Political Prisoner
by Kazi Mahmood
KUALA LUMPUR, April 1 (IslamOnline) - A member of the opposition coalition said Sunday that Anwar Ibrahim, the jailed politician, can still travel out of Malaysia in order to have spinal surgery abroad, adding that the former deputy prime minister was neither a political prisoner nor a person on death row.
"Unless the government considers Anwar as a political prisoner, then we would understand why he is not allowed to travel abroad," IslamOnline was told.
Anwar's lawyer Sankara N. Nair also voiced anger towards comments by authorities that Anwar cannot be allowed to have operations in Munich since he was a prisoner. The lawyer said the decision by the government was "Hogwash!"
The issue of Anwar leaving Malaysia for the proposed operation by Dutch specialist Thomas Hoogland, who owns the Alpha Clinic in Munich, continues to dominate headlines in Malaysia.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed and a number of his cabinet ministers have voiced their opposition towards Anwar going to Munich for the procedure and have condemned the opposition National Justice Party (NJP) for holding a secret conference with foreign ambassadors in Kuala Lumpur on the subject.
Mahathir said he was sorry the NJP had the meeting with the diplomats, lambasting their efforts to get foreign help to free Anwar.
However, a component member of the National Front (NF), the Gerakan movement's vice president, said the government should view the meeting between the NJP and the diplomats with a comprehensive eye.
Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang, the Chairman of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), asked Mahathir to explain what ironclad guarantees he wants from Anwar Ibrahim that he not flee the country if allowed to go to Germany for treatment.
Mahathir accused Anwar of trickery and of trying to flee Malaysia by seeking spinal surgery overseas. "If he goes, he will not return," Mahathir told a public rally that was telecast live. "We know why he wants to leave the country," said Mahathir.
"Anwar is not a political prisoner. [But] the attitude of the government made it clear that they consider him as such. It also confirms the various reports that the case against Anwar was truncated and politically motivated." D. Kamaruzaman told IslamOnline.
He added that the government's haste in condemning the Dutch doctor and blocking Anwar from having treatment abroad showed the true objectives of the regime. "They want Anwar in jail where they can have a hold of him. If he goes out, they are finished," he said.
Mahathir's statement "let the cat out of the bag" and revealed the real reason why the government is denying Anwar permission to go overseas for back surgery, IslamOnline was told.
"And if hogs, which means pigs, are haram [taboo] to you, then let me rephrase that - bull****!" was the initial reaction by Nair, Anwar's lawyer, who is handling his hospitalization in Kuala Lumpur.
Nair explained, "Anwar has been sentenced for a non-bailable offense, not for an un-bailable offense. This means he can still be allowed bail."
"The statement by the authorities that Anwar cannot be allowed to go overseas for his operation because he is a prisoner is hogwash."
"Anwar can actually be allowed bail if he needs to go overseas for his operation, which is the discretion of the court to grant."
"In the 1978 case of Che Su Binti Daud [Public Prosecutor vs Che Su Binti Daud - MLJ 1978], which was a drug case, she was granted bail pending appeal of her sentence. And this case, which was under Section 39B, carries a mandatory death sentence on conviction.
"Che Su's lawyer was P. V. Prabakaran, Y.B. Azmin Ali's current lawyer, and this case is the most popular example.
"In fact, there are many other cases more serious than Anwar's case where bail has been allowed. And some of these cases are for murder. There is no reason, therefore, why Anwar cannot be granted bail and be allowed to go to Germany for his back operation," Nair commented.
Health Minister Chua Jui Meng suggested that Anwar would be unpatriotic, anti-national and disloyal if he does not dispense with Hoogland's services who had "run down" Malaysia's health care facilities.
Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that there was no reason for Anwar to ask to go overseas as the operation can be performed in Malaysia.
Foreign Minister Seri Syed Hamid Albar said Anwar was disallowed from undergoing spinal surgery abroad "as he is still a prisoner convicted under our law," making it "unreasonable to transfer or give permission for him to be out of the country."
Mahathir, however, revealed the truth when he said the government would not allow Anwar to go to Germany for his back surgery lest he never returns, the opposition says.
On the other hand, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Anwar Ibrahim's wife, flatly denied that her husband has been given any special treatment by the government. In a media statement sent to IslamOnline via email, she said that she could never be thankful to the Malaysian government.
"All his rights as a normal human being have been denied," she said.
"Should I be grateful to the government for breaking into our house to arrest Anwar and for beating him severely later that very same night? Should I be thankful to a government that used the police to intimidate me for expressing my concerns on Anwar's health?" she asked.
She said Anwar has been denied bail when his alleged offenses were bailable, and was left unconscious while former police chief Rahim Noor told the world he was safe.
"Should I be grateful to the government for such 'special' statement?" the opposition leader asked.
Wan Azizah said she was grateful to Allah (SWT) because even though Anwar is in pain, many Malaysians sympathized with him and prayed for his health. "I am thankful to the doctors and nurses who took care of Sdr Anwar with great dedication," she said.
"But I do not need to be thankful to the people responsible for mistreating Sdr Anwar, which is the current government," she added.
The government media, namely RTM, Utusan Malaysia and the New Straits Times, have also been taken to task for "being manipulated by their owners to portray an illusion, spreading lies and trampling on the rights of Anwar Ibrahim," she said.
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