Letter in Support of the Honorable Datuk Seri Dr. Anwar Ibrahim

NEW YORK, July 24, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — The following Communique is sent to you for immediate release:

As many of those who have had the privilege to work with him or under his leadership in international institutions, we have heard with deep concern the charges filed against the honorable Datuk Seri Dr. Anwar Ibrahim, in spite of the fact that similar unsubstantiated charges filed ten years ago against him were overturned by the Supreme Court.

We would like, in such circumstances, to reiterate our full confidence in his moral integrity, as a man who has demonstrated, in the discharge of his national and international responsibilities, the highest ethical standards of leadership, fighting for international justice, peace and development.
We want also to express our confidence that whatever the present political circumstances, the Government of Malaysia will exert a particular restraint in the handling of this case and will demonstrate, by dropping the charges introduced against Dr. Anwar Ibrahim, an exemplary sense of respect for the rights of the individual which are so important to the international standing of Malaysia.
Signed by,
– Paul Martin, Former Prime Minister of Canada and former Chairman of the G20
– Michel Camdessus, Former Managing Director and Chairman of the Board of the International Monetary Fund
– James Wolfensohn, Former President of the World Bank
SOURCE Paul Martin; Michel Camdessus; James Wolfensohn

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Stop making statements on Anwar

SINGAPORE: Kuala Lumpur wants Washington to abstain from making further statements pertaining to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the country’s rule of law set-up.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Rais Yatim said he had informed United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice of this during their bilateral talks Thursday.

Rais said he had informed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi that he would meet Rice while attending the Asean Ministerial Meeting and would take the opportunity to talk to her on this issue.

“I had explained to Rice that investigations against Anwar over sodomy allegations were not politically motivated whatsoever. [more]

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US urges Malaysia to follow rule of law in dealing with Anwar sodomy case

SINGAPORE (AP) – U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Thursday urged Malaysia to be transparent and follow the rule of law in dealing with the sodomy accusation against opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

The comment is likely to irk the Malaysian government, which earlier this month accused the U.S. of meddling in its domestic affairs when a State Department spokesman made similar comments on Anwar’s case.

«The United States has long spoken and will continue to speak up about cases that we think need to be thought about in terms of the political circumstances,» said Rice, who is here to attend a regional security conference.

«We want to see transparency and for rule of law to be completely followed here,» she told reporters just before going into the 27-nation meeting. «We are always going to speak up on human rights cases, political cases, but we do so in a spirit of respect for Malaysia.” [more]

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