The apex court rejected Anwar's appeal against the guilty conviction by the Court of Appeal over a sodomy complaint by his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan in 2008.
“The judges will have reached their verdict only after considering all the evidence in a balanced and objective manner. Malaysia has an independent judiciary, and there have been many rulings against senior
government figures.
“The police report against Anwar Ibrahim was brought by a private individual – Anwar’s employee and personal assistant – not by the government. As the victim of a serious sexual assault, he had every right to have his case heard in court," said a spokesman in a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office.
Pro-government officials have been quick to note that the sodomy case had gone through 68 postponements and 39 appeals since it began in 2008.
“In this case, exhaustive and comprehensive due process has been followed over many years. That process is now complete, and we call on all parties involved to respect the legal process and the judgment," the spokesman added in the three-paragraph statement.
Chief Justice Tun Arifin today declared that it was "beyond reasonable doubt" that Anwar had sodomised his former aide, Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, and dismissed Anwar's appeal against the Court of Appeal's conviction.
When reading his summary to a packed courtroom, Arifin said the judges found Saiful to be a credible witness, and that they found ample corroborative evidence to support Saiful's testimony.
The judge also dismissed the defence team's argument of a political conspiracy, saying it remained an unsubstantiated allegation.
As he was reading the summary, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders took to Twitter to complain about the alleged lack of justice in the case.
"...hate to say it, but there's a reason why judges often go to Hell," Anwar's daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar, wrote on Twitter.
"Ketua Hakim berulang2 mengatakan bhw hakim percaya dgn versi Saiful. Kamu jawablah di depan Allah nanti," PKR secretary-general and vice-president Rafizi Ramli posted. (The Chief Justice is saying repeatedly that the judges believe in Saiful's version. You will answer to Allah for this.)
After the verdict was read out, Shah Alam MP and PAS central committee leader Khalid Samad said the verdict confirmed that the federal government must be changed for justice to be upheld.
Anwar, the PKR de facto leader, will lose his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat as the law bars anyone jailed for more than a year or fined more than RM2,000 from serving as a lawmaker.
Anwar is staring at a five-year jail sentence meted out by the Court of Appeal, which in March last year overturned the High Court's decision to acquit him of sodomising Saiful.
The court is adjourned for an hour following an application from Anwar's lead counsel, Datuk Seri Gopal Ram.
The prosecution has filed a cross-appeal for an enhanced sentence, which could stretch up to 20 years.
The former deputy prime minister's legal battle in the second sodomy case began in August 7, 2008, when he was charged with sodomising Saiful in an apartment in Damansara.
The High Court had in January 2012, acquitted Anwar, but this was overturned by the Court of Appeal in March last year. The first sodomy case against Anwar was in 1998, after he was sacked from the government.
