Nazri said Malaysia may quit the IPU ‘if we are not happy’. — File pic
The minister in the Prime Minister’s Department expressed outrage over the report’s stinging criticisms of the way Anwar’s trial was being handled in Malaysia.
“The statement released by IPU is of no significance and is never ever going to be a factor in determining the result of Anwar’s trial. It is ridiculous, stupid and short-sighted,” said Nazri, who is IPU Malaysia chairman and also de facto law minister.
The IPU, an international organisation of parliaments, has urged Malaysia to abandon the prosecution of Anwar for sodomy because it claims the case has brought disrepute to the justice system.
In a special report released in August, the IPU also questioned the alleged direct involvement of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and SAC I Datuk Rodwan Yusof, who had met Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan days before Anwar allegedly sodomised him.
“The prosecution has obviously been compromised, even by the mere perception that a member of its team has been guilty of wrongdoing. Removing Farah Azlina from the team has not solved the problem because her wrongdoing has tainted the entire prosecution and the integrity of the trial,” Mark Trowell, a Queen’s Counsel based in Australia, wrote in a report on behalf of the IPU.
Deputy public prosecutor Farah Azlina Latif was in the team prosecuting Anwar when allegations surfaced that she was romantically involved with Saiful.
However, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail stressed that the junior prosecutor was removed to prevent negative public perception of the Sodomy II prosecution team.
In response, Nazri said it was the responsibility of the IPU to respect the independence of Malaysia’s judiciary and not formulate any opinions based on feedback given solely by Anwar’s lawyers.
“They (IPU) have to respect the independence of any judiciary. Why is this organisation pressuring the judiciary of Malaysia to drop Anwar’s trial?
“They didn’t send any observers to Anwar’s case. I believe they know nothing except slanted reports given by Anwar’s lawyers or whoever,” Nazri told The Malaysian Insider.
The law minister warned that Malaysia would have no qualms about leaving the union if it was unhappy with the way it was being treated.
“IPU should remember that Malaysia, like any other member, is a paying member. Someone who begs for money from its members does not have a right to dictate to people what to do.
“If we are not happy, we can leave when the time comes,” said the IPU Malaysia chairman.
Among other things, the report said the alleged involvement of Najib in the trial has brought the country’s justice system into disrepute.
The report also criticised the A-G for not performing his duty.
Anwar, the 62-year-old PKR de facto leader, is currently facing sodomy charges for the second time in his life.
The former deputy prime minister is charged with sodomising Saiful at Unit 11-5-1 of the Desa Damansara Condominium in Jalan Setiakasih, Bukit Damansara here between 3.01pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.
Anwar has denied the charge, describing it as “evil, frivolous lies by those in power” when the charge was read out to him. He is charged under section 377B of the Penal Code and can be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years’ jail and whipping upon conviction. The trial is taking place 18 months after Anwar was charged in court in August 2008.
He was charged with sodomy and corruption in 1998 after he was sacked from the Cabinet and was later convicted and jailed for both offences. He was freed in September 2004 and later resurrected his political career by winning back his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat in a by-election in 2008, which had been held in the interim by his wife.
He had earlier led the opposition coalition, Pakatan Rakyat, to a historic sweep of five states and 82 parliamentary seats in Election 2008.
Recently, two former aides to Anwar revealed that they were coerced into signing statutory declarations to allegedly implicate Najib and his wife in the sodomy case.
The Federal Court has also denied Anwar access to statements made by the complainant after he claimed that there were inconsistencies between Saiful’s testimony and the sodomy charge frame against him.
Anwar’s lawyers believe that if the defence were given access to Saiful’s witness statements, it would affect the outcome of the entire trial.
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