Sodomy II: The whole nation is on trial
Anwar Ibrahim's meteoric rise to rebuild his political career involved the unification of opposition parties to capture several seats in parliament, in early 2008. His efforts energised the nation, but struck fear in Umno/BN. In late 2008, Anwar was accused of another act of sodomy (Sodomy II). The opposition claims this charge is 'politically motivated'.
Sodomy II is not about "Anwar versus Saiful". On the contrary, in Sodomy II, the whole nation is being put on trial; Malaysians are being pitted against the crumbling rule of law.
The rakyat associates Sodomy II as a trial against injustice, against a tainted judiciary, against a police force which acts like the government's bully boy and against institutions forced to do the government's bidding. Sodomy II will be remembered as a fight to regain the rakyat's democratic rights and a sense of fair play.
Instead of improving the economy and the lives of the rakyat, BN has diverted funds, time and resources into this court case.
Sodomy II has been dogged with tainted evidence, inaccurate chemical analyses, samples which were compromised, the withholding of crucial documents, conflicting statements and the non-appearance in court, of the Prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, his wife, Rosmah Mansor and former-IGP Musa Hassan, despite being subpoenaed.
The leaders of Umno/BN know that defeat in GE-13 is possible. They risk losing billions of ringgits in public contracts and patronage. There will be public anger, loss of political power and imprisonment, for a list of crimes ranging from allegations of abuse of power, mismanagement of public funds, public smears and murder.
On the final days of Anwar's submission, the prosecutors dismissed allegations that Najib was responsible for masterminding the sodomy charge against Anwar and that the defence had "very little evidence" to support its conjecture.
But in this melee, one man stands out. He is not Najib, but is former PM, Mahathir Mohamad.
Mahathir stands to lose the most because if Anwar is free, it is Mahthir's political dynasty, the business empire that he, his family and cronies have built from public money, which are at stake. The current politicians and civil servants fear that Mahathir is alleged to have details of their illegal activities, which could condemn them.
To understand the angst and revulsion Mahathir has against Anwar, one needs to refer to events in the late 90s when the financial crisis hit Asia. Mahathir had groomed Anwar as his successor, and others in Umno were envious. They started to plot against Mahathir's protégée, with poison pen letters and sexual allegations, all of which Mahathir asked to be investigated and found baseless.
The turning point was when Anwar hogged the limelight, with foreign news media praising him for his prudent fiscal measures. They hinted that Anwar should lead Malaysia. At the same time, Mahathir was disturbed by the Suharto factor in Indonesia where student groups rallied against cronyism and corruption. The final straw came when Anwar refused to bail out corporations, one of which belonged to Mahathir's son.
Today, Umno leaders face certain defeat at GE-13. Ahmad Maslan, the Umno information chief referred to a hung parliament. He has inadvertently revealed the party's insecurity and lack of confidence. In Australia, a few days ago, deputy PM, Muhyiddin Yassin evaded questions about return to emergency rule in Malaysia.
Mahathir opines that BN has a good chance of winning GE-13: "I think they are busy campaigning to make sure they can win. The Umno General Assembly was quite good, the response was quite good. It looks like Umno is now back to being popular with the people."
He sowed the seeds of suspicion in the Malay/Muslim mindset and talked of an alleged conspiracy involving Anwar and the Bar Council to overthrow unfriendly governments, like BN.
He accused Anwar of allegedly receiving support from pro-Zionist NGOs in America. He questioned Anwar's friendship with Paul Wolfowitz.
Mahathir said, "Anwar always meets with them and says that when he becomes prime minister, he will abolish this and that... will give freedom to the people.
"He has their support, either in terms of money or something else. He and several others, including lawyers, get backing from an organisation created by the US government specifically to topple governments they don't like."
When faced with dissent, and when public opinion is against them, despots like Mahathir will blame a "western conspiracy" or nameless others, for undermining their rule. He once said: "We are Muslims, and the Jews are not happy to see Muslims progress."
Malaysians will recall Anwar's black-eye, which he received whilst in police custody on the night of his arrest in 1998, prior to the Sodomy I trial. A handcuffed and blindfolded Anwar had been slapped, punched and karate-kicked unconscious, by the police chief, Abdul Rahim Noor.
Mahathir, who was the PM then, said that "the injuries could have been self-inflicted".
In the late 90s, tests by an independent laboratory in Australia confirmed that whilst in jail, Anwar had been poisoned with arsenic, at levels 77 times higher than the normal average.
Anwar's lawyer, Karpal Singh, was reprimanded by the Attorney-General, Mohtar Abdullah, for suggesting the murder attempt on Anwar. Mohtar ridiculed the poisoning and alleged that it was a "publicity stunt" by Anwar's family.
The submission for Sodomy II is deliberately timed to coincide with the run-up to GE-13. With dwindling support from Malays, Umno's strategy is to link Anwar with sodomy, a crime which is taboo, to the Malays.
Anwar will most probably be jailed. During the short interval between the appeal and starting his sentence, GE-13 will be called.
Meanwhile, Najib would wash his hands off the episode and claim that he had nothing to do with the sentencing.
Najib's dilemma is clear. If Anwar is jailed, he will be made a matyr to the cause of democracy. If he escapes incarceration, the opposition will capitalise on this and BN will suffer a humiliating defeat at GE-13.
BN knows that the 'new' Malaysia, will go on, with or without Anwar. That is BN's other great fear; an empowered rakyat.
The political tsunami of 2008 was a hint of things to come. In 2012, Malaysians will awake from their political wilderness.
Political observers claim that Umno is beyond repair and that Sodomy II is a stand-off between corrupt politicians and Anwar. The corrupt are fighting for political survival to protect their ill-gotten gains and to stave off prosecution. For Mahathir, it is said to be a fight to the finish.
With Sodomy II, Mahathir wants to see the job done, not half-finished as in Sodomy I. Mahathir's agent for change is Najib, who is similarly caught up in allegations involving submarines, sex and murder.
Pro-Umno businessmen are hedging their bets and quietly supporting the opposition. Umno politicians are probably aligning themselves with Anwar, for a possible political comeback and a reduced sentence.
Who knows, we may see droves of BN politicians thronging the departure halls of KLIA. One hears that a certain estancia in Argentina is being readied for occupation.
Mariam Mokhtar
