Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s second trial has pushed sensationalism to new heights and propelled homosexuality into mainstream conversation in the majority Muslim nation.
From LA Times
By Mark Magnier
February 26, 2010
Reporting from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The coverage is exhaustive, the politics bare-knuckle, the details lurid, all played out in a majority Muslim country. Malaysia’s sodomy trial 2.0, in which the government is accusing opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim of engaging in a homosexual act with a 25-year-old former aide, has pushed media sensationalism here to new heights.
Sodomy, even consensual, is a crime in Malaysia under laws dating to British colonial rule. And the case, some analysts say, has desensitized the public to a once-taboo topic, especially the younger generation, in a society that has long prided itself on modesty and conservative values.
Late last week, the judge declined to recuse himself from the case, rejecting the opposition leader’s claim of bias. Judge Mohamad Zabidin Diah agreed to postpone the proceedings for five weeks, however, so Anwar’s lawyers could appeal.
This is the government’s second sodomy case against Anwar, 62, a former deputy prime minister who fell out with the nation’s long-in-power leadership in the late 1990s. Malaysia’s main newspapers, most of which are owned by the government or parties in the ruling coalition, have often led the graphic coverage.
Recent testimony by former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan, who says Anwar forced him to have anal sex at a condominium in June 2008, was heard behind closed doors. But details have leaked to the newspapers.
The extensive reporting has made it difficult for citizens to avert their gaze, even if they want to, amid detailed depictions of men’s underwear, lubricant tubes, swabs and stained clothing.
Recent newspaper headlines include: “Anwar Hit on Me at Condo,” “Sodomy II Starts,” and “Not Willing to be Sodomized Again.”
“All these details,” said Rajan Palaniswami, 54, who works for a manufacturing company in Kuala Lumpur, the nation’s capital. “It’s a bit disgusting.”
For Anwar, who faces a 20-year prison term if convicted, there’s an element of deja vu. Arrested in 1998 after his political ties frayed with longtime Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar was convicted on corruption charges in 1999 and on sodomy charges in 2000.
Appearing in court in 1998 with a black eye after reportedly being beaten by a senior police officer, his treatment behind bars helped inspire a new opposition political organization, the People’s Justice Party, initially led by his wife.
In 2004, Anwar’s sodomy charge was overturned and he was released. Although he was banned from running for political office for five years, he helped energize the opposition, which in 2008 won five of Malaysia’s 13 states, its best-ever showing, denying the ruling coalition the two-thirds parliamentary majority it had in effect held since 1969.
Since then, the opposition has won seven of nine by-elections, including one that put Anwar back into parliament, challenging the dominance that Malaysia’s main ruling party — the United Malays National Organization, or UMNO — has enjoyed since independence.
Anwar, who is married with six children, has denied the charge and says the case is politically motivated and designed to deflect attention from the government’s shortcomings, a charge Prime Minister Najib Razak and other top officials deny.
The human rights group Amnesty International urged Malaysia to drop the case after the court denied Anwar access to the state’s evidence against him, and the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy said the case has called into question the integrity of Malaysia’s judiciary.
Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who earlier accused the consulting firm of “talking through their nose,” defended the judicial process and questioned calls to drop the case.
“Let the court decide. We cannot say Anwar is guilty or not guilty,” he told reporters last week.
Legal records suggest that sodomy charges under Section 377 have been leveled only seven times in Malaysia in 70 years, according to thenutgraph.com, an independent Malaysian news website, with four of those charges being against Anwar.
“A lot of questions are going to come up about the evidence and whether this is a fair trial,” said Bridget Welsh, associate professor of political science at Singapore Management University. “The bottom line is, Malaysia is going after an opposition figure, no matter what may or may not be in the case.”
The publicity has made homosexuality a topic of mainstream conversation, analysts said.Although this was also true during Anwar’s first trial, the expansion of the media, Internet and social networking sites has made coverage far more widespread, they said.
“There’s some kind of perverse sense. In one way people are repelled but also intrigued,” said Ibrahim Suffian, head of the independent Merdeka Center for Opinion Research in Kuala Lumpur, comparing it to the Clinton presidency sex scandal involving White House intern Monica Lewinsky.
Most worrying in the Anwar trial, some analysts said, is the effect on young students who are inundated by far more news coverage than were earlier generations.
“Everyone is talking about sodomy, sodomy, sodomy, from the supermarket to the kitchen,” said Abu Hassan Hasbullah, a University of Malaya associate professor of media studies.
A recent survey of 500 students by Zentrum Future Studies, a nonprofit research group started by Abu Hassan, found that more than 60%, including many in elementary school, knew what sodomy was, compared with a fraction of that before the latest trial. With knowledge may come a desire to engage in such practices, Abu Hassan said.
“Once you open this primitive gate of our culture, you can’t close it again,” he said.
As the proceedings drag on, many Malaysians appear to be in wait-and-see mode.
“My sense is, even among people who support the government, a good number doubt this is a real case,” said Ibrahim of the polling organization.
Norani Othman, a sociologist and founding member of SIS Forum Malaysia, a Muslim women’s organization, said some in the government may be playing dirty politics, but Anwar is being stubborn and vain.
“Whatever his sexual orientation is, I’d advise him to just let it go and resign so our alternative politics is not held hostage,” she said. “Whether Monica Lewinsky’s blue dress or the underwear here, they belong to the same rubbish bin of contemporary history.”
mark.magnier
l agreed 100%, bad impression as my kids keep on asking me what liwat is,
word that introduced by Mahatir in 1999 and UMNO. 10 years ago my kids is small
but now they are grown up. l think UMNO should have a classroom seminar
on RTM explaining what liwat is so that my kids know that what is the problem with our
so call Islamic goverment that can frame other human being for the purposed of having control
in power.
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Dusta nastapa yang di sembahkan UMNO BN pada RAKYAT amat memalukan Orang Islam, naktanya PERKASA dari isu Liwat ini telah memalukan orang Melayu semelaya!! mananak letak muka orang melayu !! orang melayu di pertuduh oleh bangsa lain sebagai bangsa peliwat akibat dari propanganda yang terlampau di akhbar dalam isu liwat, UMNO telah mencemar keseluruhan bangsa melayu. kenapa PERKASA bisu dalam isu ini?? Isu yang saya perkatakan bukan isu pokok tertapi saya melihat secara keseluruhan isu ini. ini bukan sahaja isu liwat tertapi jenama bangsa melayu itu sendiri. kalau UMNO sangup mencemarkan nama baik bangsa melayu demi menpertahankan kedudukan dan kekuasaan ini satu tuba buat bangsa melayu dari UMNO, Ini satu lipatan sejarah dunia belum ada satu PARTI dalam dunia yang sangup menbusukan bangsanya sendiri demi berada di puncak kuasa para peminpin UMNO kemana pergi dibentangkan red carpet tapi kaki penuh lumpur. Parti LDP tempatan ini akan menuju senasib dengan abangnya LDP Jepun.
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DSAI, WE ARE SADDENED BY THE COURTS DECESIONS. IT IS VERY DISTURBING THAT THE COURTS ARE BEING CONTROLLED BY THE EXECUTIVE. TOTAL DENIAL ON THE PART OF THE COURT IS NOT JUSTICE DELAYED ANYMORE. IT IS FOR SURE. THE COURTS SOUND SOOOOO VERY EFFICIENT IN THEIR JOBS. SHIT!! SORRY, I AM UPSET.
PLEASE DOUBLE UP YOUR EFFORT AND MAKE PR STAND FIRM. ANY INTERNAL MATTERS PLEASE SOLVE THEM BY MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS AND FORTIFY PR’S STATUS. PLEASE PUT EVERYTHING IN WRITING.
DSAI, IT’S KNOWN FACT THAT YOU ARE THE CORNER STONE OF PR. BN WILL PULL YOU OUT AND DUMP YOU. WE RAKYAT CAN ONLY PRAY FOR YOU AT THIS JUNCTURE. GOOD LUCK.
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The man is 62. Can he still get an erection?
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kalau di myanmar kes aung san su kyi tidaklah memalukan individu, junta menggunakan kuasanya untuk menidakkan hak su kyi dari bertanding pilihanraya kerana junta tahu ia akan kalah jika su kyi dibenarkan bertanding. junta terlalu gila kuasa dan tak mahu beri peluang kepada orang lain untuk memajukan myanmar.
hari ini amerika minta supaya su kyi dibenarkan untuk bertanding pilihanraya. jika campurtangan amerika terhadap hak rakyat myanmar dianggap sebagai campurtangan kuasa asing keatas myanmar maka campurtangan ini adalah positif. soal keadilan keatas su kyi mesti dilihat juga dari sudut membangunkan serta memajukan myanmar yang telah ketinggalan kerana kerakusan pihak junta untuk memegang tampok kuasa. terang-terang mahkamah myanmar menambahkan lagi tempoh tahanan dalam rumah keatas su kyi selama 18 bulan hanya kerana seorang ‘mat saleh’ berada dirumah su kyi yang memang tidak logik ia dapat bolos masuk ke rumah itu yang dikawal amat ketat dan dikelilingi tasik.
farah aidid dan ali mahadi di somalia (satu ketika dulu) juga perlu diambil teladan.
apa salahnya diberi ruang kepada rakyat menilai keupayaan su kyi untuk mentadbir myanmar…fikir-fikirkan lah
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To Norani Othman, this is alternative politics. The very fact that these judicial theatrics thrive is because of alternative politics. A true presence of alternative politics had not existed before this. Now whether one is or isn’t a support of Mr Ibrahim is irrelevant. How could you so lightly express such an opinion in light of such massive criminal injustice. As founder of such a prolific society I am baffled by your questionable views. Had such injustice fall upon you, would you just walk away?
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chef mohd Reply:
March 1st, 2010 at 2:32 am
U ARE THRULY RIGHT….DIA MAKAN GAJI KERAJAAN APA…TAK DE UMNO DIA MINTA SEDEKAH KAT JALANAN…MAYBE LEPAK KAT LOR**G HAJI TAIB..KENA SOKONGLE…
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u can c,read n understand,,the statement of NORAINI OTHMAN,founder of SIS,this is the thinking of our people,NO FIGHTING COURAGE AS ANWAR IBRAHIM…50 TAHUN MERDEKA ,,,PEMIKIRAN MELAYU KITA KEBELAKANGAN 100 TAHUN…U STRONGLY NEED ANOTHER HANG JEBAT…not balaci2..yang punya kuasa dan pangkat,,seperti HANG TUAH…nak ke sedara bagi isteri kat orang lain???tepuk dada tanya sendiri le..MUNGKIN ONE OF FOUNDING MEMBER OF SIS FORUM BOLEH BERKONGSI SUAMI….
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Kesan yg paling buruk kpd BN adalah rakyat semakin meluat dgn kepimpinan UMNO,adalah amat mustahil utk rakyat yg waras mempercayai apa yg BN lakukan kpd DSAI..sistem kehakiman,media yg berat sebelah akn memyebabkn suara rakyat memboikot BN dlm pilihan raya.Mungkin BN berbangga dgn jumlah ahli anggota UMNO (termasuk lh sy sendiri),tapi perlu diingat tdk semua ahli berdaftar dgn UMNO akn mengundi UMNO…Kes fitnah yg berlaku keatas DSAI, ahli PKR lompat parti (yg ada kes dgn SPRM,isu kewangan,tatatertib)dikutip oleh BN amatlh memalukan.Rakyat semakin bijak dlm menilai
setiap isu yg dicanangkn oleh BN.akhir kata,kpd 1malaysia berilh kebebasan kepada MEDIA utk berlaku adil dlm menyampaikan berita (rakyat muak,setiap hari kes keburukn PK dicanangkn ttg tp kes ahli parlimen BN digambarkn bagai bayi yg xpernah lakukan kesilapan).RAKYAT BUKAN BODOH DENGAN KETIDAKADILAN MEDIA>>>>>>>
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I can feel what you feel Abu..and am strongly urgde people out there to open up their eyes, their mind and their ears to see what’s going on surrounding them. Don’t let the power over control yourself and ‘malay-destruction’ seems so close to the peak just because of inhumanity towards themselves. I am so much in depressed to oversee in future.what would happen to our next generation?? Would they have a safe and certain place in their own land?
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