Anwar, Lim use letters as political tool<\/p>\n
By Ranjan Roy<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AP): Their political voices muted by prison
\nwalls, two of Malaysia's most prominent dissidents have struck up
\nan unusual correspondence, exchanging letters from their cells in
\nan intimate dialog about life and politics.<\/p>\n
But copies of the letters, distributed to the media and
\npolitical activists, have also acted as a way of publicizing the
\nshared plight of unlikely pen pals who, though they have rarely
\nshaken hands, now embrace a common cause.<\/p>\n
The more celebrated of the two -- ousted deputy prime minister
\nAnwar Ibrahim -- is being tried on four charges of abuse of
\noffice. He faces prosecution on another six charges, including
\nsodomy.<\/p>\n
His correspondent, opposition member of Parliament Lim Guan
\nEng, sits in a dingy cell with only a ventilation hole in the
\nceiling. His crime: asking why a powerful government politician
\nwas not detained in a statutory rape case.<\/p>\n
About a month ago former political foes Anwar and Lim
\nexchanged letters of greetings during Ramadhan and the Chinese
\nNew Year.<\/p>\n
Although the letters have received some notice, Malaysian
\npapers -- which are guarded about criticism -- have largely
\nignored the correspondence that has been smuggled in and out of
\nthe prisons by family visitors.<\/p>\n
\"In some ways, our incarceration has helped open the eyes of
\nMalaysians to the injustices of our system, and thereby to rouse
\nthem from their complacency and encourage them to participate
\nmore meaningfully in the political process,\" Anwar wrote to Lim
\nfrom his cell.<\/p>\n
He quoted Chinese philosophers and wrote about the challenge
\nof transcending \"the politics of race to enhancing and protecting
\nthe dignity of man.\"<\/p>\n
In his reply, Lim, who is the first sitting lawmaker to be
\nimprisoned, reflected on how the two had been \"pulled and pushed
\nby the ebb and flow of history.\"<\/p>\n
\"We took divergent paths and were headed toward the opposite
\nends of the political spectrum. Yet, both of us ended in prison
\n-- victims of injustice and gross abuse of power,\" said Lim, who
\nbegan his prison term a few weeks before Anwar was dismissed.<\/p>\n
For half a decade Anwar, rising from a Malay Muslim radical
\nbase, was heir to Mahathir's office, often governing in his
\nabsence.<\/p>\n
Lim Guan, a Chinese social activist, followed his father's
\nfootsteps into opposing the Malay nationalism that is the
\nfoundation of Mahathir's governing party and the system that
\nAnwar represented until his Sept. 2 sacking.<\/p>\n
The latest letter came this weekend from Lim on the birthday
\nof his father, Lim Kit Siang, the opposition leader in
\nParliament.<\/p>\n
Nearly a generation ago, the elder Lim was in jail for
\nopposing the government and imprisoned again for 18 months by
\nMahathir during a crackdown on the opposition in 1987. His son is
\nalso serving an 18-month sentence.<\/p>\n
In prose dripping with pathos of separation from his 3-year-
\nold son, Lim said: \"Like me when I was 8, little Whay Khai cannot
\nunderstand the journey their fathers have to take.\"<\/p>\n
\"However, I hope that little Whay Khai can understand that no
\nmatter how much I want to, I cannot come back to him until my
\njourney is complete,\" he said in the letter carrying birthday
\nwishes for his father over the weekend.<\/p>\n
Had they stayed on course, Anwar would likely have ended up
\ndependent on the Malay majority, and as a leader of the mainly
\nChinese Democratic Action Party, Lim may have received little
\nMalay support.<\/p>\n
As they struggle to steer Malaysia away from race-based
\npolitics, Lim and Anwar say Mahathir's promise of democracy has
\nbeen subverted by a virtual gag on public discussion of issues
\ndeemed sensitive by the government.<\/p>\n
Mahathir's United Malays National Organization has ruled since
\n1957 in an unequal partnership with parties that claim to be sole
\nrepresentatives of the Chinese and Indian minorities.<\/p>\n
While Anwar's case has drawn world condemnation, Lim's case is
\nlittle known outside Asia.<\/p>\n
But last week, an international delegation of lawmakers said
\nLim's conditions of imprisonment \"do not meet relevant
\ninternational standards\".<\/p>\n
It was \"cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment,\" said a
\nstatement by the Inter-Parliamentary Union.<\/p>\n
The government shot back.<\/p>\n
\"Don't expect them (prisoners) to receive accommodation and
\ntreatment similar to those provided by three-, four- or five-star
\nhotels,\" said Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Anwar's successor to the
\ndeputy prime minister's office.<\/p>",
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