MANILA, Philippines – Former Philippin president and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, on Monday, November 9, called for the immediate release of Malaysia's former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who has been detained for 5 years.
Speaking to reporters during a press conference for the visit of Nurrul Izzah Anwar, daughter of the detained Malaysian leader, Estrada said, "I take this opportunity to seek justice for my good friend Anwar and call on the appropriate authorities to immediately release the former deputy prime minister."
Nurrul Izzah Anwar is the current head of the opposition party and a parliament member.
"I believe that Anwar has been a victim of political injustice, which has been the plight of all great leaders who fought for changes towards democracy for their respective countries," said Estrada.
A known friend to Estrada, the former Malaysian opposition leader was detained in 2010 after being charged with sodomy. Anwar denied the charges and accused the ruling party, led by Prime Minister Rajib Nazak, of framing him to end his strong opposition.
Compassion and respect
Seeking "compassion" from Malaysian authorities, Estrada said Anwar needs urgent medical attention due to a muscle tear in his right shoulder.
He also asked them to "respect international law," referring to the United Nations (UN) findings on Anwar's detention.
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention unanimously said in an opinion in September that Anwar is being held illegally, which is in violation of the international law. The arbiters recommended him for release. (READ: UN body calls detention of Malaysia's Anwar 'arbitrary)
Ruling party abuses sedition law
Also speaking to the press on Monday, the younger Anwar said there is a "larger degree of persecution against politicians and civil society" in Malaysia.
A detainee herself, Anwar accused the government of abusing the sedition law just to go after anyone who is against the current leadership.
"We have been investigated, detained. For what? For just criticizing the government. The gov't uses sedition act – which we got from our colonial masters, the British government – to silence any form of criticism against his leadership."
She also stressed that this takes the focus away "from criminalizing addressing the causes of terrorism" and instead going after legal forms of opposition. – Rappler.com