Anger mounts over Anwar's conviction in Malaysia

Anger mounts over Anwar's conviction in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Malaysia was hit by a wave of criticism on Wednesday over the conviction of former finance minister Anwar Ibrahim for sodomy, with the United States saying it was outraged by his nine-year jail sentence.

But Malaysia said on Wednesday Anwar had been tried fairly and rejected international condemnation of the verdict and the nation's judicial system.

"I am quite sure the court has given this sentence because the court thinks that is the right punishment for whatever," Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said in an interview with the Saudi Gazette which was reprinted in his party's online newspaper. "It is entirely for the court to decide."

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said allegations the trial was flawed were unwarranted and that "These allegations are obviously biased and reflect a shallow appreciation of Malaysia".

Canada, a Geneva-based jurists' group and the World Bank chief joined Australia, New Zealand and human rights bodies in criticizing a Malaysian judge's decision on Tuesday to sentence Anwar to nine years in jail.

High Court Judge Arifin Jaka found the former finance minister and his adopted brother guilty of sodomy at the end of a 14-month trial that split the country and spurred calls for democratic reforms.

In a strongly worded statement, the State Department said it shared the concern of many Malaysian and international observers about what it called the "questionable" fairness of the trial.

"The United States is very distressed by the Aug. 8 conviction of the former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim and his adopted brother on sodomy charges," the department said.

"We are also outraged by the imposition of a nine-year sentence to be added consecutively to the six-year sentence that Anwar is currently serving on his previous corruption conviction," the statement added.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters that U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright would make her concern known to the Malaysian government.

In a sign of frosty relations between the two countries, U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen, who is visiting Southeast Asia next month, has left Malaysia off his itinerary.

World Bank President James Wolfensohn said he was deeply distressed by the prison term, while Australia's Prime Minister John Howard said he was worried "the judiciary there is not as independent as used to be the case".

Howard told a Melbourne radio station: "It does seem to be part of a series of events that represents some kind of political campaign against Anwar and that is a matter of very great concern."

Canadian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marie-Christine Lilkoff said "(Canada) regards the convictions as a result of a trial that was seriously flawed".

The International Commission of Jurists condemned the ruling as politically motivated.

The Geneva-based group, composed of 45 jurists who defend the rule of law worldwide, criticized comments by Mahathir during the trial as "prejudicial and entirely inconsistent with a free and independent judiciary".

Anwar, sacked as finance minister and deputy prime minister in September 1998, testified that Mahathir and his associates framed him in a sex scandal to drive him from office and stave off a possible leadership challenge.

Newspapers around the world criticized the verdict, with Hong Kong's South China Morning Post saying it was unjust and might threaten the country's stability.

Thailand's The Nation newspaper said the decision was a serious setback to Malaysia's judiciary.