Ex-police chief claims Anwar provoked beating

Ex-police chief claims Anwar provoked beating

KUALA LUMPUR (Agencies): Malaysia's ex-police chief said on Tuesday he was provoked into slapping ousted finance minister Anwar Ibrahim, and denied Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had instructed him to beat the former minister.

In his first public admission that he hit Anwar after the sacked minister was arrested in September, former inspector- general of police Abdul Rahim Noor said he lost control and slapped Anwar after being called a "father of dogs".

"Let me make it clear, my act as referred to was not prompted, abetted, instructed, advised, directed, assisted by anyone else, not even my police officers who helped me, not even the prime minister," the ex-police chief said.

Rahim Noor, 55, offered the riveting testimony to a royal commission investigating injuries Anwar suffered after being arrested in September.

Anwar, who says he was the victim of a high-level political conspiracy, on Monday demanded to know whether Rahim Noor had been ordered by Mahathir to hit him.

Mahathir sacked Anwar in September after differences over the economy and politics had reached a breaking point.

Rahim Noor, who resigned as police chief in January, said Anwar was blindfolded and standing when he entered the detention cell after the former minister was arrested on Sept. 20.

"My first instinct was to unfold the blind. As I was about to do that, he uttered these words, Ni bapa anjing (this father of dogs). I lost my cool," Rahim Noor said.

"I slapped him both on the left and right. He fell on the concrete slab. In the blink of an eye I could not remember whether I delivered other physical acts on him."

Anwar denies he provoked his assailant and says he was punched, slapped and hit with karate chops in a beating that included at least seven hard blows, lasted several minutes and left him bleeding and unconscious.

Rahim Noor, wearing a dark grey suit and tie, said he struck Anwar immediately after being insulted, and he acted alone.

"I lost my sense of control, and in that situation, perhaps because of offensive words used against me, perhaps the loss of control came after we had discussed about the chaotic situations in KL."

Anwar was arrested after leading thousands of protesters through the capital calling on Mahathir to quit. Rahim Noor said police decided to arrest Anwar and asked the army for help to avoid Indonesian-style riots.

The opposition Democratic Action Party secretary-general Lim Kit Siang said on Tuesday that Rahim Noor had brought the greatest shame and dishonor to the entire Malaysian police force.

"He should be arrested and charged in court, and stripped of his Tan Sri (honorific) title," Lim said.

"If the head of one of the most important and powerful instruments of government could totally lose his cool and control so easily, Malaysians have reasons to be worried about the quality of leadership and governance in the country," Lim said in a statement.

Lim charged that Rahim "showed no contriteness in his conduct in the last five-and-a-half months for assaulting Anwar or plunging the police force, the government and the nation into international infamy."

He said Anwar was also denied medical attention for five days after the beating despite repeatedly asking for it.

Lim also urged Mahathir to "publicly and unreservedly tender his apologies" to Anwar for suggesting the injuries could have been self-inflicted and for "failing in his duties" as home minister at the time.