'Under fire' Nazri: Who's pressuring Pornthip?

By S Rutra and Fazy Sahir - Free Malaysia Today


KUALA LUMPUR: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Aziz has refuted an allegation by renowned Thai pathologist Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand that she was under "political pressure" from the Malaysian government to not testify in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest.
While dismissing the allegation as false, Nazri said Pornthip must name the people who she alleged put pressue on her as the government will not take action if there was no solid proof.

"Tell me who? Nazri or others. We want to know, if not how are we to help her? Anybody can say I have been pressured. But who put the pressure, we want to know," he told reporters at the Parliament lobby.

The Teoh inquest will resume on April 20. Previously, Pornthip had suggested that there is a strong possibility that the former DAP political aide could have been murdered.

Meanwhile, Nazri also denied an allegation that the Thai expert was not allowed to enter Malaysia earlier this year, as according to him there was no reason for that as she had been allowed in earlier.

"I do not believe that the government and our officers harassed her and stopped her from entering the country," he said.

Nazri said if that had happened, he would have been informed.

"The attorney-general has never met me to say that we will not allow her in. I feel she is just scared. I believe that her testimony in the inquest is not correct, which she cannot defend now and is looking for reasons to not attend," he said.
Speaking to reporters at the Parliament lobby, Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail echoed Nazri by saying that Pornthip should not be fearful about coming to testify at the inquest.

“She is welcome. I want her to come and give evidence in peace... I will make sure that the authorities will provide the security. No problems,” he said.

Later Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein also guaranteed Pornthip's safety and urged her to reveal more details on the “political pressure” from Malaysia.

“We've always guaranteed everyone's safety but they must come with details, with facts, with direct correlation to the fear that your safety is at risk... (now there is) a general allegation that she is concerned about her safety. How do we work on that?”

Nazri comes under fire

Meanwhile, lawyer Gobind Singh, who is representing Teoh's family, asked Nazri to provide proof to back up his allegation yesterday that Pornthip had lied.

“Nazri’s accusation against Pornthip is serious and issued at his pleasure,” he said, inviting the minister to participate in the Teoh inquest.

DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang, speaking at a press conference with Gobind, urged the government to call for an emergency Cabinet meeting to discuss Pornthip's claim of being pressured.

Another lawyer representing Teoh's family, Lim Lip Eng, said his client may initiate a contempt of court proceedings against Nazri.

“Does Nazri have proof to support his allegation. If he doesn’t than isn’t his statement in contempt of court?” asked the Segambut MP.

Lim has also filed a notice to debate the issue in Parliament.

“The people have the right to know if there is any truth in the allegation (Pornthip's claim). Why was she stopped from entering Kelantan early this year?

“What kind of threats are we exposed to? Is she a terrorist or a spy?” he asked.

Karpal: Coroner must take action

Karpal Singh, who is also acting for the family, said publicly attributing a lie to a witness who has given evidence in an on-going inquest amounts to a serious contempt of court.

"The matter is further compounded by the fact that the charge against Pornthip does not come from a personality of mean rank.

“Nazri is a lawyer by training and a minister of considerable seniority,” he said in a statement.

Karpal said the coroner conducting the inquest has sufficient powers under the Third Schedule of  the Subordinate Courts Act, 1948 to take cognizance of the contempt committed by Nazri.

“Whether Pornthip is a truthful witness or not is an issue for the magistrate (coroner) to decide,” he said.

The DAP MP urged the coroner to issue a notice to Nazri to show cause on April 20, when the inquest resumes, on why he should not be cited for contempt.

"The magistrate should act without fear or favour. The dignity of his court demands that he cites Nazri for contempt," he said.

MB: Testify via Internet

Selangor state appointed lawyer for the inquest, Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, also took Nazri to task for labelling Pornthip a liar.

“This was not a nice thing to say, especially when the minister was reacting to a news report. I have sent an email to Pornthip to get a clearer picture.

"Its very unfortunate for someone to make such an accusation when we have yet to understand what the real issue is,” he told FMT.

Asked whether Malik or Gobind would persuade Pornthip to reconsider her decision, Malik said they will wait for her official response before deciding on the next course of action.

Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim suggested that the Thai expert give her testimony live on the internet.

"As far as I'm concerned we still want Dr Pornthip to come here and help in establishing the reason for Teoh's death," he said.