Anwar Ibrahim

Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim (born August 10, 1947) is a former deputy prime minister of Malaysia who is currently imprisoned. In the early 1990s, he was being groomed to succeed Mahathir bin Mohamad as prime minister but fell out of favor, largely due to differences in opinion on economic issues.\nIn 1998, Anwar was arrested on charges of sodomy and corruption, and the subsequent series of trials have drawn into question the independence of the Malaysian judiciary with regard to politically sensitive cases. Anwar was born in Cherok Tok Kun, a village on the mainland side of the northern Malaysian state of Penang and was educated at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar and the University of Malaya, where he read Malay studies. As a student, Anwar founded a Muslim students organisation, Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Islam Malaysia (PKPIM). He was also elected President of the Malaysian Youth Council or Majlis Belia Malaysia (MBM). In 1974, he was arrested during a student protest against rural poverty and hunger. Although never tried, he spent twenty months in the Kamunting detention camp for political prisoners. In 1982, Anwar, the founding leader of a youth Islamic organisation called ABIM, shocked his liberal supporters by joining the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), led by Mahathir who had become prime minister in 1981. Anwar moved up the political ranks quickly. In 1984, he was elected Leader of UMNO Youth and in 1986, became Vice-President of UMNO. He first served as Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports before becoming Education Minister. He was appointed finance minister in 1991. In 1993, he was made made deputy to Mahathir after winning the Deputy Presidency of UMNO against Ghafar Baba. For several months in early 1997, Anwar was acting prime minister while Mahathir took a two-month holiday. As the 1997 Asian financial crisis unfolded, Anwar responded to the demands of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a fundamental restructuring of the economy and opening to greater foreign investment and competition. As Finance Minister, he instituted an austerity package that slashed government spending by 18%, cut ministerial salaries and deferred major investment projects. These measures aroused bitter opposition from Mahathir and his circle, whose business empires had developed through government contracts, cheap credit, concessions and protection from foreign competition. Many Malaysian companies were facing the threat of bankruptcy, but Anwar declared: "There is no question of any bailout. The banks will be allowed to protect themselves and the government will not interfere." Anwar was an advocate for a pro-free market approach sympathetic to foreign investment and trade liberalization, whereas Mahathir favored currency and foreign investment controls. At the annual meeting of the UMNO in June of that year, a book, 50 Dalil Kenapa Anwar Tidak Boleh Jadi PM ("50 Reasons Why Anwar Cannot Become Prime Minister"), containing graphic sexual allegations as well as accusations of corruption against Anwar was circulated.\nShortly thereafter, Anwar obtained a court injunction to prevent further distribution of the book and filed a defamation complaint against the author but Mahathir apparently began strengthening his control over the party and making moves against Anwar. In July, a visit by the Indonesian opposition leader Amien Rais led to more pointed comparisons of Malaysia and Indonesia. Domestic critics accused Mahathir of tolerating cronyism, and the international financial press and the IMF demanded greater transparency in government and UMNO-managed enterprises. In August, police charged the author of the 50 Reasons book with malicious publishing of false news. But in September, the judge who had banned the book's distribution was transferred, raising concerns among Malaysian lawyers about the independence of the judicial system. On September 2, 1998, Anwar was fired from the Cabinet, amid police reports that he was under investigation. On the September 20, Anwar led tens of thousands in a protest march in Kuala Lumpur demanding reformasi (economic and political reforms) and Mahathir's resignation. Anwar's attacks on the alleged nepotism of Mahathir's rule were fortified by widespread discontent over the decades-long suppression of democratic rights in Malaysia. He was arrested several hours later. On September 29, Anwar appeared in court, bruised and with a black-eye, and pleaded innocent to charges of sodomy and corruption. The national police chief later admitted to beating him. In separate trials, Anwar was sentenced to six years in prison on April 14, 1999 for corruption and nine years prison for sodomy on August 8, 2000. The sentences were to be served concurrently. The corruption charges were related to using his powers to cause the arrest of the author of the "50 Reasons" book. The following year, his corruption conviction was upheld by Malaysia's Court of Appeal. \nIn July 2002, Anwar lost his final appeal against the corruption conviction in the Federal Court. Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch expressed some doubts about the fairness of the trials. [1] [1]. In a speech during the proceedings against him, Anwar explained why he what he believed to be the underlying motive behind his persecution. He told the court: "I objected to the use of massive public funds to rescue the failed businesses of his (Mahathir's) children and cronies." However, with the results of the 2004 general election, the poor showing of the Keadilan Party -- a political party founded on the basis of supporting Anwar — which only garnered a single parliamentary seat — it is generally believed that Anwar's influence over the general public and politics in Malaysia has waned, except for a few die-hard followers of his.

External links

\n*Free Anwar Campaign\n*Anwar Online: Reformsi Ibrahim \n