05 January 1999

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- A Government doctor told Malaysia's High Court last week there was no medical evidence that the adopted brother of Anwar Ibrahim, the ousted former deputy prime minister, had been sodomized.

An odd case that keeps getting odder.

Dr Zahari Noor, who examined Sukma Darmawan, one of the men accusing Anwar of forced sodomy, said there would be little physical evidence of it five to ten years after the fact. Sukma and one of Mr Anwar's speech-writers, Muna war Anees, were each sentenced to six months in jail last September after confessing they were sodomized by the former government official in April 1998 and March 1993, respectively.

The two men later filed appeals, saying they were tortured by police to plead guilty. Sukma was released on bail last week pending his appeal against conviction.

Anwar, arrested a day after Sukma and Munawar were jailed, faces five charges of sodomy - one allegedly committed with Mr Sukma - and five corruption charges relating to an attempt to cover up his crimes. He denies all charges, saying they were fabricated by friends of the Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to destroy his political career.

Dr Zahari, the 20th witness in the trial, said during cross-examination by Anwar's lawyer, Christopher Fernando, that he had examined Sukma in police custody in September and found no evidence of rape. Despite the admission there would be no evidence after ten or five years, Anwar's lawyers were jubilant.

Last month, the government's key witness, Azizan Abu Bakar, recanted earlier testimony that Anwar had sexually assaulted him. The stunning admission seriously undermined the credibility of the government's case.

Source : Obtained from WWW.DATALOUNGE.COM