Malaysian police detain another opposition leader

Malaysian police detain another opposition leader

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysian police detained another
opposition leader on Sunday after he vowed to press for political
changes following weekend protests by supporters of ex-deputy
premier Anwar Ibrahim.

Tian Chua, vice-president of the National Justice Party
(Keadilan) founded by Anwar's wife, was picked up by police at a
shopping mall, said Elizabeth Wong, coordinator for rights group
Suaram.

Wong told AFP that Chua was taken away by several plainclothes
policemen to a nearby police station. His lawyer was with him,
she said. No other details were immediately available.

Tian was among four Keadilan leaders who were ordered on
Friday to report to police or face arrest. Police already
detained three Keadilan members on Friday in a preemptive move to
block a mass planned rally.

On Saturday, 48 people were detained amid sporadic anti-
government protests which drew a massive response from police and
security forces.

Tian's arrest came just three hours after he gave a news
conference at Keadilan's headquarters, vowing to continue with
his party's struggle for political reforms.

He said the "terror tactics of the government were a complete
failure" as supporters defied police orders and gathered in the
Malaysian capital Saturday to commemorate the first anniversary
of Anwar's sentencing.

Despite a massive show of police force, the people managed to
assemble peacefully and the government's allegations that the
opposition was planning riots were proven to be "simply lies."

"It was the people's victory over the culture of fear imposed
by the security forces," he told reporters. "If necessary, we
will take to the streets (again)."

Anwar, 52, sacked by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in
September 1998, was jailed for abuse of power and is now on trial
for alleged sodomy.

He says he is the victim of a high-level conspiracy because he
intended to expose corruption and was seen as a political threat
to the premier.

On Sunday, Malaysian police claimed victory in foiling the
illegal mass rally by supporters of the jailed Anwar but
opposition leaders slammed the excessive show of force.

"We are satisfied that the situation has returned to normal
and that our operations have been successful," the police
director for internal security, Hamid Mustaffa, told AFP.

Hamid said police and paramilitary forces who poured into the
city center early Saturday to block the rally had pulled out but
surveillance was continuing.

Reinforcements brought in from four other states would be put
on stand-by in the capital, he added.

But leaders of the opposition Alternative Front alliance
condemned the police's "fear tactics" to block the peaceful
gathering and called for the immediate release of the detainees.

Keadilan deputy president Chandra Muzaffar slammed the "heavy-
handed tactic" by the authorities to crush the proposed
gathering, describing it as a "concerted attempt to marginalize
Anwar."

He said the clampdown was also part of a "continuing pattern
to tighten the screw" on opposition parties following an erosion
of support for the ruling coalition in general elections last
November.

"Police are actually abusing their power by acting as a tool
for the political establishment," he charged.

Anwar's wife Azizah Ismail, who heads Keadilan, criticized the
way authorities intimidated people through a show of force.
Asked if her husband was still viewed as a threat to the
government despite being behind bars, she said: "It seems so."

Keadilan is a member of the Alternative Front, along with the
Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS), the Democratic Action Party (DAP)
and the Malaysian People's Party.