KUALA LUMPUR (The Sun, Aug 5, 2008) : The Bar Council has raised several questions over issues arising from what it terms as “troubling” reports over the medical examination by a doctor of Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan who accuses Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim of committing sodomy.

“Reports that the examination, done a few hours before Saiful lodged a police report against Anwar, showed no evidence that Saiful had been sodomised by anyone has raised serious quesions,” said Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan.

The questions are:

> Was the doctor who examined Saiful interviewed by the police and was he detained for any length of time?

> Is the doctor facing any form of intimidation, and if so, from whom?

> Did the medical report by another doctor confirm or contradict the first medical report? and

> If the medical report is true, showing a lack of prima facie evidence, what is the justification for the vigorous actions taken against Anwar as well as the public call by the authorities for his DNA sample?

“The answers are important as they bring into focus the integrity of the Malaysian law enforcement,” she said.

“Also of concern is the abrupt disappearance of private investigator P. Balasubramaniam (in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder) case after his first and second statutory declarations,” said Ambiga.

“The disappearance has yet to be satisfactorily explained by the authorities. All these show a pattern of events that caused much disquiet to the right-thinking public. It’s disturbing that the questions are unanswered,” she said.

“The credibility of Malaysia’s judicial system is at stake as the public must be left without doubt that the criminal justice system is not misused or abused,” she added.

Ambiga said the integrity of professionals, doctors or lawyers, must not be undermined.