PUTRAJAYA, Oct 28 — All he wants is for his story to be heard in court, a chance to clear his name from the stigma of a conviction for sodomy, a crime he says he did not commit.
On Thursday, the Federal Court will decide if it has the jurisdiction to review the Kuala Lumpur High Court decision which threw out Dr Munawar Anees’s application for an appeal over a sodomy conviction which dates back about a decade.
Pakistan-born Munawar is a former speech writer to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim when the latter held the post of Deputy Prime Minister. He was charged in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court alongside Sukma Darmawan, Anwar’s adopted brother, for performing “intercourse against the order of nature” with Anwar. Both men were found guilty and sentenced to six months’ jail in 1998. Munawar served the sentence.
However, he then filed an appeal against his conviction in the KL High Court. He claimed that the plea of guilty entered in his name during the initial trial was made under duress. He has since attempted to obtain a hearing for his appeal in the High Court but failed.
Today, his lawyer, Manjeet Singh Dhillon, told the three-member Federal Court that he was not asking the Federal Court to reverse the decision or set aside the conviction made by the High Court.
“I’m asking the court to let his appeal be heard in the High Court on its own merits,” Manjeet said.
“It has never been heard in the High Court,” he added.
Manjeet told The Malaysian Insider that on the day the appeal was brought up in the High Court, Munawar was absent from the hearing as he was away in the US — where he is based — and the presiding judge, Justice Wahab Patail, had struck out the appeal before hearing Munawar’s submissions.
Munawar, now 60, is a project management consultant with the US-based John Templeton Foundation. He flew into Malaysia alone just two days ago for the Federal Court hearing and is staying at a hotel in Petaling Jaya.
“I have been seeking justice for the past 10 years,” Munawar told The Malaysian Insider outside the courtroom before the hearing.
“The system has not allowed me to say what I want to say. It has given judgment and held me in detention, illegally, on false charges.
“It has been a traumatic story for the past 10 years, psychologically, physically, financially. My kids grew up under this fear and smear system. My reputation has been tarnished. What I’m looking for is, yes, that there will be a moment of justice,” said Munawar.
Debra Chong
The Malaysian Insider
28/10/08
PEOPLE'S POWER
There is a difference between UMNO and Barisan Nasional. I want to make it clear that it is not the Barisan Nasional (BN) government, but the UMNO government. It is not the government, but UMNO. Barisan Nasional is a coalition of unequals, not equals. UMNO is the big brother in BN. Therefore UMNO must be held responsible; and more importantly, UMNO must not be allowed to hide behind the BN banner. UMNO is the enemy, not BN. UMNO is a racist party which has perfected the art of divide and rule. Using “carrot and stick” UMNO has obtained support. If moderate Malays, the natives of Sabah and Sarawak, and the Chinese and Indians unite, then they can vote UMNO out of office.
ReplyDeleteFor decades UMNO has strengthened her position by destroying the independence of the judiciary. So much so that high officials and the Police can almost act with impunity.
I have come to the conclusion that the easy solution is to completely defeat UMNO in the next elections. We have to vote racist UMNO out of office. UMNO is bent on divide and rule, which has affected Malaysia badly. It is for the next generation of Malaysians to undo the damage done to Malaysia by UMNO. There is a dire need for moderate Malays at the political level. There is also a need for the natives of Sabah and Sarawak to form a third force to protect their own interests. Imagine how UMNO had dealt with Sabah; from a rich state, Sabah has been reduced to a poor state subservient to UMNO. There has to be an explanation. The only way is UMNO has to be voted out of office. The younger generation of Malaysians do not like racist politics and UMNO must be taught a lesson by the younger generation by voting UMNO out of office. Please vote for any party but UMNO/BN.
To my Sabah and Sarawak brothers and sisters I tell you that historically UMNO has always avoided a Royal Commission of Inquiry as much as possible many times. Historically, UMNO has misused the Internal Security Act numerous times. Any political party that is an accomplice to UMNO is also the enemy. Any political party that is a co-conspirator to UMNO is also the enemy. To my Sabah and Sarawak brothers and sisters I say that you should form a third force. A third force would require unity among Sabahans and Sarawakians.
To my Sabah and Sarawak natives, I need you to understand some things. Who is a so called bumiputra? Just about any Muslim (from any nation) who can obtain Malaysian citizenship can claim bumiputra benefits. How about the natives of Sabah and Sarawak? When it is beneficial to the Malays, the Malays cleverly put the Malays, the Orang Asli, and the natives of Sabah and Sarawak together. The Orang Asli of Malaya are not even mentioned in the constitution. Who are the bona fide indigenous people of Malaya? There are some who feel that the Orang Asli of Malaya are the indigenous people of Malaya. It may be possible that the Malays have usurped the position of indigenous people of Malaya and cleverly excluded the Orang Asli in the constitution. If we allowed the Orang Asli or the natives of Sabah and Sarawak to draft the constitution of Malaysia, it would look very different. So, it all depends on who drafts the constitution.
We have to get into the habit of putting people in office through votes, and removing people from office through votes. Nobody should be allowed to topple the government. We have to institutionalize the multi-party political system, one person one vote, and an independent judiciary.
In the 2004 elections (11th General Election), the voters gave good support to Mr.Abdullah Badawi. But reforms did not come. Why? Probably because UMNO had done well in the elections. If UMNO had done well in the elections, then the election results tell UMNO that the voters are satisfied with the status quo. If the voters are satisfied with UMNO, then no reforms are necessary. In the 2008 elections (12th General Elections), UMNO did not do well, but she managed to win. UMNO did lose the 2/3 majority in the Parliament, but she did win, nevertheless. Will UMNO undertake reforms now? I would not be surprised if she did not. Why should she? UMNO is still the winner in the elections; and she can plan to rise and may even succeed to rise again. So, as long as she wins, she will never undertake the reforms. So, how do the voters get the reforms that they need? The voters will get the reforms when UMNO is completely defeated in the 13th General Elections. If UMNO wins zero seats in the next elections (13th General Elections), then some other party would have to rule Malaysia. Let us call it Party B. If UMNO is completely defeated in the next elections (13th General Elections), then Party B would rule Malaysia. Would Party B undertake reforms? If Party B does not undertake reforms, then voters would know what to do.
There is no doubt that UMNO has used gerrymandering to strengthen herself. If we removed gerrymandering from UMNO, then there would be a reduced UMNO. So the non-UMNO voters of Malaysia have good reasons to vote against UMNO.
It is possible that UMNO has used the Police Force to strengthen herself. The Police Force is required to be neutral. But is the Police Force neutral? I appeal to the Police Force to be neutral.
UMNO is a race based political party and also the big brother of BN. So, the complete defeat of UMNO in the next elections is the only way to get reforms. The complete defeat of UMNO in the next elections is the only way to get a new beginning.
UMNO is inclined to believe that Malaysians cannot do anything if they are in any way dissatisfied. The voters, however, have to send a strong message to UMNO that the voters can do something: the voters can vote.
So, the next step for Malaysians is to completely defeat UMNO/BN in the next elections.