A Sign Of Things To Come
Din Merican
After reading Dato Seri Anwar’s press statement (October 25, 2007) concerning the Anti Corruption Agency’s (ACA) last minute cancellation of its meeting at his office today, you could tell that the Abdullah Badawi Government and the UMNO-led BN coalition – they are one and the same since the line between government and party has been blurred – is in a state of utter confusion and paralysis.
The bitter irony is that the problems they face are of their own making. After three days of boasting and saber rattling –remember Nazri? – that Anwar must concede or face possible arrest, the only sounds coming from the courtyard of his office in Petaling Jaya were the chants of “Reformasi! Reformasi! Reformasi” (reformation) and “Allah, Selamatkan Anwar!” (Allah Saves Anwar!”)
When Anwar stepped into the courtyard and into the embrace of a passionate audience and announced the apparent victory, there were cries of jubilation from the eagerly awaiting masses.
The special branch officers milling in the crowd and who had prevented students from the nearby Ninth College of the University of Malaya from crossing the street to join the rally (they most certainly wanted to partake in) have plenty to tell their masters when they get back to their offices. Some of them were still parked down the street blocked by the crowd.
Let us not lose our perspective. This is only one battle won, but the struggle for justice continues.
The economic outlook in Malaysia is still dismal. Corruption is indeed rampant, and worsening. The ACA is trying hard to flex its muscle, but unfortunately it can only claim victory in only a few small, inconsequential cases. The big fish are still roaming freely, swallowing up more largesse and ultimately shortchanging the Malaysian people.
The political climate is depressing and becoming increasingly myopic. Everyone is talking about an early election but the government remains silent as if trying to pull a fast one us, once again.
Meanwhile, constituencies are being rigged right before our very eyes as reported by Malaysiakini. The Elections Commission has demonstrated its effectiveness more as the reelection headquarters for the Barisan coalition than as an institution to promote and ensure free and fair elections, its reason for being.
Social tensions are boiling. One merely has to peel away the superficial thin veneer to see how fragile and stressed the relations between the various ethnic groups are, as if waiting to explode at the slightest provocation.
And to pour salt on this festering wound, we as a nation are actually entertaining the notion of giving Chief Justice Ahmed Fairuz an extension of his contract. What nation that professes to be modern and democratic and a “Hadhari” could insult its people with such an audacious and indefensible act. Shame on you, Abdullah Badawi! That Fairuz still receives a paycheck is beyond my powers of comprehension.
Given today’s victory what can we expect? Certainly the ghosts of 1998 will be resurrected and the attacks on the KeADILan-led opposition coalition, and the direct attacks on Dato Sri Anwar will begin and expected to intensify once the date of elections is revealed.
In the meantime it is not out of the realm of possibility that Dato Sri Anwar and his brave associates would be carted off to prison, their crime being merely their valiant attempts to bring to justice to those characters who have quite clearly tampered with the sanctity of our judicial system.
Of course we know that in doing so, the government virtually guarantees the success of a strong and dedicated opposition that cherishes principle over mere profit and the lust for power.
The international community is watching with apparent disgust at how our government is conducting its affairs in our name. This I gathered in my conversations with a number of senior diplomats who were guests at Dato Sri Anwar’s open house in Segambut, Kuala Lumpur last weekend.
The scathing critique of the judiciary by Dato Sri Anwar published in the Wall Street Journal this week assures us that millions around the world are now scrutinizing this government’s dirty laundry. Soon we would be on par with Myanmar in the quality, level and type of publicity that we would attract around the world.
So dear friends and countrymen and women, we must not bask in our glory for even more than a blink of an eye. Our work in communicating to the people our core message of reform and renewal must go on. In fact it must accelerate.
At the same time those who would prefer to sweep all this muck under the rug and carry on with business as usual are planning and plotting their next move. Though as we can see from the events of this week, they have not been very effective given all the money and assets they have at their disposal.
We are counting on the blogosphere and journalists of conscience, as well as our fellow citizens who recognize the stakes in this most serious matter, to help us in this effort.
There is no doubt in our minda that today’s events are a categorical victory for all Malaysians. Dato Sri Anwar is taking a firm stand. He is fully aware that he is exposing himself to great personal risk. However he believes strongly that this issue affects the very core and foundation of our nation.
I also saw with my own eyes and felt in my heart in ways that I have not experienced in my many years on this earth that one man can indeed make a huge difference. We must be unified and join Dato Anwar in the pursuit of justice.
Din Merican is Program Director of KeADILan. E-mail: Dino.beano@yahoo.com