Anwar verdict will help shape Malaysia's political destiny
Anwar verdict will help shape Malaysia's political destiny
By Nelson Graves
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): A Malaysian judge delivers the verdict
this week in the corruption trial of sacked finance minister
Anwar Ibrahim with a ruling that will help shape the nation's
political destiny.
High Court Judge Augustine Paul decides on Wednesday whether
Anwar is guilty or innocent of four corruption charges, each
carrying a maximum penalty of 14 years in jail and a 20,000
ringgit (US$5,000) fine.
The verdict will put an end to Malaysia's longest trial, which
has split the nation ahead of general elections due by June 2000.
Guilty or innocent, Anwar, once the second most powerful man
in Malaysia, will face other legal hurdles before he could ever
rejoin the political mainstream and challenge Prime Minister
Mahathir Mohamad.
Anwar says he was framed by enemies led by Mahathir, who
dismissed his former deputy last September after differences over
economic policy and politics reached breaking point.
But the 51-year-old accused, who was barred from trying to
prove a political conspiracy during his trial, expects to be
sentenced to at least two years in prison.
"Two years, four years, it makes no difference," Anwar said
last month.
A sentence of at least one year or a fine of 2,000 ringgit
($500) would be enough to disqualify the former
prime-minister-in-waiting from serving in parliament for five
years from the date of his release from jail.
Barred from parliament, Anwar, the only politician besides
Mahathir with nationwide appeal, would be sidelined.
Mahathir says his former protege turned dissident was morally
unfit and planned to topple his 18-year-old rule with Indonesia-
style riots.
But Anwar says Mahathir, who plucked his former deputy from
the Islamic youth movement in 1982, and former cabinet colleagues
plotted against him so he could never reach the pinnacle of power
and expose favoritism and corruption.
Anwar's troubles have stirred considerable sympathy among
Malaysians and many foreign leaders who see his case as a test of
the Southeast Asian nation's legal and political systems.
Anwar's arrest in September set off unprecedented anti-
government street demonstrations which police eventually put down
with an iron fist.
Authorities were expected to cordon off the courthouse where
the verdict will be delivered to head off protests on the day
Anwar's fate is decided.
Anwar's wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, formed a new political
party this month, giving the spontaneous movement that sprang up
around Anwar after his sacking a potential safety valve for its
frustrations.
But authorities were concerned there could be efforts to mount
large-scale protests if Anwar received a long prison term.
Foreign governments including the United States and the
European Union as well as rights groups were preparing statements
to be issued after the verdict, diplomats said.
Anwar's arrest has strained Malaysia's ties with several of
its neighbors including Indonesia and the Philippines. Kuala
Lumpur denounced the United States after Vice President Al Gore
openly embraced Anwar's "reformasi" (reform) movement during an
Asia-Pacific summit in the Malaysian capital last November.
Anwar's case has emboldened Malaysia's small opposition,
dwarfed by Mahathir's ruling coalition and divided along ethnic
lines. But even the opposition leader discounts its chances of
depriving Mahathir of victory in coming general elections.
Anwar also faces a fifth corruption charge and five sodomy
counts, and authorities have said they could bring more charges.
But it was not clear if the government would press other
charges once the verdict on the corruption charges is announced.
If convicted, Anwar can turn to the Court of Appeal. If he
failed there, his last legal option would be the Federal Court.
As a last resort, he could ask the king for a pardon.