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| Malaysian Court Upholds Opposition Leader’s Sodomy Conviction | Malaysian Court Upholds Opposition Leader’s Sodomy Conviction |
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| PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia — A Malaysian court on Tuesday unanimously upheld a sodomy conviction and a five-year prison sentence for Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the country’s opposition, in the culmination of a protracted legal battle entwined with a high-stakes struggle for political supremacy. | PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia — A Malaysian court on Tuesday unanimously upheld a sodomy conviction and a five-year prison sentence for Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the country’s opposition, in the culmination of a protracted legal battle entwined with a high-stakes struggle for political supremacy. |
| A lower court had sentenced Mr. Anwar to five years in prison on the charge last year, and the Federal Court’s rejection on Tuesday of his final appeal effectively removed him as the linchpin of a fractious but ascendant opposition less than two years after the government was nearly toppled in a general election. | A lower court had sentenced Mr. Anwar to five years in prison on the charge last year, and the Federal Court’s rejection on Tuesday of his final appeal effectively removed him as the linchpin of a fractious but ascendant opposition less than two years after the government was nearly toppled in a general election. |
| “This, to me, is a fabrication coming from a political conspiracy to stop my career,” Mr. Anwar said in the courtroom here in the country’s administrative capital after the court upheld his conviction. | “This, to me, is a fabrication coming from a political conspiracy to stop my career,” Mr. Anwar said in the courtroom here in the country’s administrative capital after the court upheld his conviction. |
| He defiantly addressed the judges from the dock, calling them “partners in crime” and said, “You chose to remain on the dark side.” | He defiantly addressed the judges from the dock, calling them “partners in crime” and said, “You chose to remain on the dark side.” |
| As Mr. Anwar continued his angry remonstration and his voice rose, the five judges walked out of the chamber. | As Mr. Anwar continued his angry remonstration and his voice rose, the five judges walked out of the chamber. |
| “I pledge that I will not be silent!” Mr. Anwar thundered. “I will fight for freedom and justice. And I will never surrender!” | “I pledge that I will not be silent!” Mr. Anwar thundered. “I will fight for freedom and justice. And I will never surrender!” |
| The judgment appeared to be the endgame of a 17-year power struggle between Mr. Anwar, 67, and the party that had once groomed him to be the country’s next leader. Mr. Anwar’s prosecutions since being kicked out of the United Malays National Organization in 1998 have been repeatedly condemned by human rights groups and Western governments as setbacks for democracy. They have also left Malaysia deeply polarized. | |
| Mr. Anwar automatically lost his parliamentary seat on Tuesday as a result of the prison sentence and will be barred from contesting elections for five years after his release. | Mr. Anwar automatically lost his parliamentary seat on Tuesday as a result of the prison sentence and will be barred from contesting elections for five years after his release. |
| The United States, which last year agreed to “elevate” its relations with Malaysia to what Washington described as a comprehensive partnership, said in a statement late Tuesday that it was “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the court judgment. | The United States, which last year agreed to “elevate” its relations with Malaysia to what Washington described as a comprehensive partnership, said in a statement late Tuesday that it was “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the court judgment. |
| “The decision to prosecute Mr. Anwar, and his trial, have raised serious concerns regarding the rule of law and the independence of the courts,” said the statement, which was issued by the United States embassy in Kuala Lumpur. | “The decision to prosecute Mr. Anwar, and his trial, have raised serious concerns regarding the rule of law and the independence of the courts,” said the statement, which was issued by the United States embassy in Kuala Lumpur. |
| The United Malays National Organization, which leads the governing coalition, has presided over Malaysia since the country gained independence from Britain in 1957. It has long employed mildly authoritarian tactics to stay in power. In recent years, as young voters have defected to the opposition and the government’s power has slipped, prosecutors have filed a raft of cases against critics, including opposition figures, a professor and a cartoonist. In the coming months, the government plans to strengthen and update an archaic sedition law, one of the main tools used to stifle dissenting voices. | |
| This was the second prosecution of Mr. Anwar on a charge of sodomy. He spent six years in prison after a conviction in a separate sodomy trial by a different accuser but was acquitted on appeal in 2004. He has always insisted that the charges were baseless and politically motivated. Human rights groups question whether a law against sodomy should exist at all. | This was the second prosecution of Mr. Anwar on a charge of sodomy. He spent six years in prison after a conviction in a separate sodomy trial by a different accuser but was acquitted on appeal in 2004. He has always insisted that the charges were baseless and politically motivated. Human rights groups question whether a law against sodomy should exist at all. |
| Soon after Mr. Anwar’s conviction was upheld on Tuesday, the Malaysian government issued a statement saying that “exhaustive and comprehensive due process” had been followed throughout the case. | |
| “The police report against Anwar Ibrahim was brought by a private individual — Anwar’s employee and personal assistant — not by the government,” the statement read. “As the victim of a serious sexual assault, he had every right to have his case heard in court.” | “The police report against Anwar Ibrahim was brought by a private individual — Anwar’s employee and personal assistant — not by the government,” the statement read. “As the victim of a serious sexual assault, he had every right to have his case heard in court.” |
| That characterization, however, was at odds with the case brought by the prosecutors, who used a section of the law that deals with consensual sodomy. Sodomy, or “carnal intercourse against the course of nature,” is illegal for both heterosexual and homosexual couples in Malaysia and is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. But the law is rarely invoked. | That characterization, however, was at odds with the case brought by the prosecutors, who used a section of the law that deals with consensual sodomy. Sodomy, or “carnal intercourse against the course of nature,” is illegal for both heterosexual and homosexual couples in Malaysia and is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. But the law is rarely invoked. |
| The sodomy accusations in the current case were brought by Saiful Bukhari Azlan, who said Mr. Anwar had sex with him in June 2008 when he was working as an aide in Mr. Anwar’s party. In their appeal in the case to the Federal Court last October, defense attorneys argued that the semen samples that were offered as evidence in the trial were corrupted: retrieved from the accuser’s body 36 hours after the alleged incident, kept in an unrefrigerated cabinet by the police and submitted for DNA analysis two days later. | |
| In a country where the government regularly bans performances by Western artists judged to be lewd, both of Mr. Anwar’s sodomy trials have featured discussions of semen-stained carpets and mattresses, and of the use of personal lubricants. | In a country where the government regularly bans performances by Western artists judged to be lewd, both of Mr. Anwar’s sodomy trials have featured discussions of semen-stained carpets and mattresses, and of the use of personal lubricants. |
| Mr. Anwar’s defense team portrayed the current case as blatantly political. The accuser testified that two days before the sex allegedly occurred, he met with Mr. Anwar’s political rival, Najib Abdul Razak, who was deputy prime minister at the time and who has since become prime minister. | Mr. Anwar’s defense team portrayed the current case as blatantly political. The accuser testified that two days before the sex allegedly occurred, he met with Mr. Anwar’s political rival, Najib Abdul Razak, who was deputy prime minister at the time and who has since become prime minister. |
| It was not made clear in court how a clerk working for the opposition obtained a meeting with Mr. Najib, one of the country’s most powerful men. The accuser also met with senior police officials before the alleged crime, and the reasons for those meetings were not explained. | It was not made clear in court how a clerk working for the opposition obtained a meeting with Mr. Najib, one of the country’s most powerful men. The accuser also met with senior police officials before the alleged crime, and the reasons for those meetings were not explained. |
| The lead prosecutor in the trial, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who counts the prime minister and the governing party as clients in his private practice, was also at Mr. Najib’s home when the accuser visited. | The lead prosecutor in the trial, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who counts the prime minister and the governing party as clients in his private practice, was also at Mr. Najib’s home when the accuser visited. |
| N. Surendran, a defense lawyer, argued in court during the appeal that the authorities had “a prearranged plan” to prosecute Mr. Anwar. | N. Surendran, a defense lawyer, argued in court during the appeal that the authorities had “a prearranged plan” to prosecute Mr. Anwar. |
| The five-judge panel said on Tuesday that Mr. Anwar’s claim of a political conspiracy was a “mere allegation unsubstantiated by any credible evidence.” | The five-judge panel said on Tuesday that Mr. Anwar’s claim of a political conspiracy was a “mere allegation unsubstantiated by any credible evidence.” |
| Mr. Anwar’s legal team repeatedly but without success sought to remove the prosecutor in the trial on the grounds that he was a material witness. They also sought to have Mr. Najib and his wife testify in court, a request the court also rejected. (Mr. Najib’s lawyers said his meeting with Mr. Anwar’s accuser had no connection with the alleged sodomy that took place two days later; the judge agreed and said he did not need to testify.) | Mr. Anwar’s legal team repeatedly but without success sought to remove the prosecutor in the trial on the grounds that he was a material witness. They also sought to have Mr. Najib and his wife testify in court, a request the court also rejected. (Mr. Najib’s lawyers said his meeting with Mr. Anwar’s accuser had no connection with the alleged sodomy that took place two days later; the judge agreed and said he did not need to testify.) |
| Mr. Anwar was initially acquitted in 2012 by the Kuala Lumpur High Court, but prosecutors appealed, and Mr. Anwar was sentenced to five years in prison after the appeal. Defense lawyers say the judgment was unusually swift. The sentence was delivered 90 minutes after lawyers had finished their submissions. | Mr. Anwar was initially acquitted in 2012 by the Kuala Lumpur High Court, but prosecutors appealed, and Mr. Anwar was sentenced to five years in prison after the appeal. Defense lawyers say the judgment was unusually swift. The sentence was delivered 90 minutes after lawyers had finished their submissions. |
| The date of the appeal hearings was initially scheduled for April last year. But it was moved up to March, days before Mr. Anwar was due to register for an election that could have put him in charge of the country’s richest state, Selangor, which is under opposition control. The sentence blocked Mr. Anwar from running in the election. | The date of the appeal hearings was initially scheduled for April last year. But it was moved up to March, days before Mr. Anwar was due to register for an election that could have put him in charge of the country’s richest state, Selangor, which is under opposition control. The sentence blocked Mr. Anwar from running in the election. |
| Christopher Leong, president of the Malaysian Bar Council, said moving up the trial date and the unusually swift sentencing had led to a “perception that justice may have been hijacked.” | Christopher Leong, president of the Malaysian Bar Council, said moving up the trial date and the unusually swift sentencing had led to a “perception that justice may have been hijacked.” |
| Mr. Anwar, a former deputy prime minister in the governing party, was ousted from power in 1998. His jailing will leave the opposition, which attracts supporters as varied as rural Islamic conservatives and ethnic Chinese city dwellers, without a clear unifying figure. | Mr. Anwar, a former deputy prime minister in the governing party, was ousted from power in 1998. His jailing will leave the opposition, which attracts supporters as varied as rural Islamic conservatives and ethnic Chinese city dwellers, without a clear unifying figure. |
| “We don’t mind losing elections,” Mohamad Hatta, a medical doctor and a member of Parliament in Mr. Anwar’s opposition coalition, said in an interview. “But this is unfair,” he said of the court’s decision. | “We don’t mind losing elections,” Mohamad Hatta, a medical doctor and a member of Parliament in Mr. Anwar’s opposition coalition, said in an interview. “But this is unfair,” he said of the court’s decision. |
| Mr. Hatta said he was “not optimistic” about the future of the diverse opposition parties working together without Mr. Anwar. “He’s a mediator and an experienced leader,” Mr. Hatta said. “He was the raison d’être of our working together.” | Mr. Hatta said he was “not optimistic” about the future of the diverse opposition parties working together without Mr. Anwar. “He’s a mediator and an experienced leader,” Mr. Hatta said. “He was the raison d’être of our working together.” |
| Charles Santiago, also a member of Parliament in Mr. Anwar’s coalition, said the decision would further erode confidence in the Malaysian courts. | Charles Santiago, also a member of Parliament in Mr. Anwar’s coalition, said the decision would further erode confidence in the Malaysian courts. |
| “A citizen must be able to trust the court system,” he said. “This case clearly tells you that you cannot get justice.” | “A citizen must be able to trust the court system,” he said. “This case clearly tells you that you cannot get justice.” |