Malaysian Troops Set For Verdict on Anwar 
International Herald Tribune
April 14, 1999
Thomas Fuller

Malaysian police deployed troops and water cannon Tuesday outside the courthouse where Anwar Ibrahim, the dismissed deputy prime minister, will hear the verdict Wednesday in his corruption trial.

Reacting to plans by opposition groups to hold a candlelight vigil just outside the red-brick courthouse, the police issued a statement saying that "action will be taken against anyone found to be organizing or participating in any illegal gathering in Kuala Lumpur."

The city's police chief, Kamarudin Ali, also warned against anyone carrying out "any activities that create nervousness or disturbances."

Late Tuesday, several hundred protesters burned candles and chanted pro-Anwar slogans during a peaceful vigil near a mosque behind the courthouse. Paramilitary troopers with batons later dispersed the group. At least two protesters were detained.

Students have insisted that they will gather outside the courthouse Wednesday to await the verdict.

Judge Augustine Paul, who has presided over Mr. Anwar's 77-day trial, will hand down the decision alone, determining not only the course of the fallen politician's career but setting the political climate for the next few months.

Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad must call general elections sometime before next April but could call them sooner.

If Mr. Anwar is sentenced to more than one year in prison or fined more than 2,000 ringgit ($526), he will be disqualified from Parliament for five years from the date of his release.

The politically electrified trial, which was marked by street demonstrations late last year, has been closely watched in Malaysia, where Mr. Anwar remains a popular figure, despite his falling-out with the political establishment.

Dismissed from government by Mr. Mahathir in September, Mr. Anwar is charged with ordering police officers to cover up allegations of sodomy and adultery.

The former deputy prime minister denies the charges and claims he is the victim of a political conspiracy, an argument that the judge refused to accept as a defense.

If convicted, Mr. Anwar faces 14 years in prison or a 20,000 ringgit fine, or both, on each of the four charges against him.

Mr. Anwar also faces five charges of sodomy and one other count of obstructing justice, but it was unclear whether he would be tried for them.

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