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The relevance of Anwar’s release Anwar remains the most enigmatic of Malaysian icons
by Maznah Mohamad
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Anwar is now a free man again after exactly six years to the day when he was unceremoniously dismissed as Deputy Prime Minister, if not the Prime Minister-in-waiting. But what will be the implication of his freedom? Here and there, in private and in public, debates ensued about whether the court’s decision was orchestrated with approval from above; or whether indeed the judiciary had exerted its independence; whether finally, the rhetoric of a new, clean and open government has been translated into deeds. People were divided between the usual cynics and the hopefuls. Although news of his release was welcomed, it did not excite an emphatic or spirited exchange among the public media commentators or the private conversationalists. Is Anwar not as relevant as he was before? Despite the seeming indifference of the present government to Anwar, camps among Anwar supporters, Anwar's adversaries, and Anwar's sceptics are still neatly in place. The divide between the Anwar believers and non-believers still exists. The lines of fissures are intact — six years did not do anything to mend the divide. Fearful of Anwar's freedom It should mean something politically when ploys are still being used to imply that the court’s decision may have a negative impact on other legal cases. This is because, among other reasons, Anwar’s conviction has been overturned on the ground that the dates of his alleged offence could not be specified. The Attorney-General played up to the sentiments of groups fighting for fairness for women victims of sex-related cases. He tossed open the possibility that most of these cases would have to be thrown out due to the inability of the victims to remember the exact dates of the offences. It is understandable that some people should be fearful of Anwar’s freedom. If we recall the events and days that led to his imprisonment many people were prepared to give up their scruples in order to see that Anwar should be put away permanently. It was a highly acrimonious battle; the pro and anti-Mahathir camps were equally matched in terms of their deployment of unsavoury tactics. The stakes were high, either way. For those who had been left out in the cold in the past six years it would be best to get Anwar back into active politics and ultimately into high office. For those who had been rewarded by Anwar’s exit it would be disconcerting to know that he is now free to exercise his will — would he truly bear no malice towards anyone? What would be the likely scenarios of an Anwar comeback? If UMNO remains intact and the present leadership is able to continue in ensuring good and sustainable economic growth and if there are no serious splits within the party then Anwar can only rise to prominence if he heads the opposition coalition. What is the likelihood of this happening?
However, merely having Anwar as the leader will not necessarily make the BA more acceptable nor able to match the strength of the BN’s coalition. The BA also has to find a new political niche. Will he go Mahathir's way or Razaleigh's? The other scenario of an Anwar comeback is the one that is popularly touted by the cynics in Malaysian politics — that Anwar may eventually go the manner of previous UMNO detractors before him, viz. Mahathir Mohamad or Tengku Razaleigh. But will he go the Mahathir or the Razaleigh way? Notwithstanding PM Abdullah Badawi and his deputy Najib's categorical pronouncement that Anwar will not be re-admitted to UMNO, the future is not for them to determine alone. For now, Anwar need not make any rousing speeches or plot his political map. There will be countless pursuits to catch up on, besides his health and time with his family and friends. Putting his sincere thoughts and reflections on life and politics to paper would be one priority. But who are we to say what path Anwar will eventually take? He may be a changed man or he may remain the quintessential politician we know. Despite being shelved into the wilderness of a concrete prison he has not been forgotten in the political equation. Although UMNO had survived as the leading party without him, it remains unknown if it would have done so if Anwar had led the Opposition in the early days of Reformasi. But the mainstream media have now totally blocked him out of their news pages, after a respite of two to three days of the media's ‘opening up’ on his acquittal. In private circles, opinions are circulated to depict him as ‘guilty as hell’ despite the court’s decision. This can only mean that he still looms large in these silences and subterfuges. For some people the Reformasi movement has faded into the sunset of a ‘battle-weary’ opposition politics. But Anwar has remained the most enigmatic of Malaysian icons — because the struggle to make him irrelevant is so relevant in the agenda of the present establishment. Now e-mail us and tell us what you think. Your comments might be published in the Letters section of our print magazine, Aliran Monthly. | |||||||||||||||
The struggle to make him irrelevant is so relevant in the agenda of the present establishment