From The Financial Times, UK, 15th March 2000
Anwar: police chief plea of guilty
By Sheila McNulty in Singapore - 14 Mar 2000 21:45GMTThe Malaysian police chief who resigned after admitting that he assaulted Anwar Ibrahim, the jailed former deputy prime minister, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a reduced charge of "causing hurt" and is to be sentenced on Wednesday.
Abdul Rahim Noor had originally been charged with causing grievous hurt, which carries up to three-and-a-half years in jail, to which he pleaded innocent. But prosecutors met his request to reduce the charge to one carrying a maximum one-year jail term, providing a swift end to a trial that would have focused national attention on one of the most damaging episodes of Mahathir Mohamad's tenure as prime minister as he prepares for internal party elections in May.
Mr Anwar says he was beaten unconscious while blindfolded and handcuffed after being arrested following the massive anti-government protest he led through the capital in response to his abrupt sacking. He emerged days later from incommunicado detention with a black eye and bruises on his neck and arms.
Although a police investigation failed to identify Mr Anwar's assailant, Mr Rahim Noor later confessed during hearings by a royal commission, saying he "hit" Mr Anwar after being provoked.
Malaysia's reputation as a civil society was irreparably damaged by the assault, which provoked a backlash against the administration of Dr Mahathir, who had previously enjoyed almost universal admiration among his people. They were enraged by the treatment of the man groomed to become the next prime minister and believed Mr Anwar when he said he had been targeted for becoming a political rival of Dr Mahathir.
Despite winning a new mandate in the general election held last year by courting the Chinese and Indian minorities in the ruling coalition, Dr Mahathir remains under pressure within his own Malay-dominated Umno political party. Many Malays not only find the treatment of Mr Anwar offensive but are incensed that Dr Mahathir initially suggested Mr Anwar had inflicted his injuries on himself.
Opposition politicians criticised government prosecutors for reducing the charge, particularly as doctors had said Mr Anwar was fortunate to survive the beating. Mr Anwar is serving a six-year jail term for abusing his power to conceal alleged sexual misdeeds.