Soros slammed for being 'pro-Anwar'

Soros slammed for being 'pro-Anwar'

KUALA LUMPUR (Agencies): Allies and opponents alike of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad have lashed out at international financier George Soros for calling for an end to the Malaysian leader's 17-year rule.

Ruling coalition politicians, youth leaders and even the opposition attacked the financier, who on Thursday also called for the release of detained former finance minister Anwar Ibrahim.

"Soros' statement clearly indicates a long-term plan of his and his parasites to destroy the democratically elected government of this country," Works Minister S. Samy Vellu was quoted by local media as saying.

"....he has chosen to destroy the economy of developing nations (and) for this he must be punished," Samy said, without elaborating.

Mahathir, who has clashed sporadically with Soros since economic turmoil swept through Asia last year, kept his silence over the financier's latest remarks.

"Let's talk about other things, more interesting things," he told reporters on Saturday in the northern resort island of Langkawi.

Mahathir has also sought to keep his distance from commenting on U.S. Vice-President Al Gore after Gore openly endorsed Anwar's movement to drive the Malaysian leader from office.

Soros, in a speech at a U.S. university, said: "I hope that Anwar will be either let out of jail or if he's put in jail, the public opinion is going to turn against Mahathir."

Anwar was sacked as finance and deputy prime minister on Sept. 2, the day after the country imposed radical currency controls to curb speculation.

He was arrested 18 days later after unprecedented street protests calling for an end to Mahathir's rule and is now being tried on sex and corruption charges, which he has denied.

Meanwhile, a Malaysian opposition leader released after two weeks in jail vowed Sunday to continue his fight for democracy, on the eve of the resumption of ousted deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim's trial.

Tien Chua, chairman of the People's Coalition for Democracy (Gagasan), told AFP that he would continue to uphold democracy in Malaysia and the right to freely voice opinions.

"It feels good to be free," he said. "This is a form of police intimidation, perhaps to show to the public that they would take serious action on people who challenge the government."

Chua, 35, was first detained on Nov. 21 along with three others after police broke up an anti-government protest.

Nine days later, he was given bail but was re-arrested after police allegedly found seditious printed materials in his house.

Chua was again granted bail by a magistrates court Saturday but must report to the police station on Dec. 19 to determine if the bail will be extended, or if he will be charged or released unconditionally.

Chua said his two weeks in lock-up opened his eyes to how police handle dissent.

"There was a lot of physical and verbal threats, abuse and harassment," he said. "During the period, I developed fever and flu due to poor and unhygienic prison conditions. I am still coughing now."

The state-run Bernama news agency reported that supporters of another figure, the Democratic Action Party's Deputy Secretary- General Lim Guan Eng, gathered on Sunday outside a prison after they were refused entry to wish the political dissident a happy birthday.

Lim is serving an 18-month jail sentence after having been found guilty of violating Malaysia's Seditious Act and Publications and Printing Presses Act.

He is the son of Lim Kit Siang, who is the opposition leader in the Southeast Asian nation's Parliament, and secretary-general of the Democratic Action Party.