MN Amin's argument that Anwar Ibrahim is a convict plain and simple , and thus is not entitled to special treatment compared to other prisoners would be perfectly valid if Anwar's conviction was indeed fair.

However, while I'm no Anwar fan, I believe that whether or not he's guilty as charged, the very fact that Anwar was charged at all was politically motivated.

While I couldn't care less whether Anwar did or did not engage in homosexual acts with consenting partners, since that's his personal affair, the fact that he was arrested for committing such an act exposes the questionable motive behind the charge.

One just has to look around and ask how many other people have been similarly charged either for homosexual acts or corruption to see that Anwar's arrest and charge were politically motivated.

Now if Anwar was guilty as charged, then there's not much more that can be done, since whether it's fair or unfair, reasonable or not, clever or stupid, the law is the law and will have to run its course unless his conviction is overturned or Anwar gets a royal pardon.

It is possible he was guilty of some other offence but was charged for the above in the same way - Al Capone was charged for tax evasion when the authorities in the United States couldn't convict him of other crimes.

If this is so, then Anwar should be charged, tried and sentenced for whatever his offences may have truly been and he should be acquitted of the present ones.

If his trial and verdict delivered were unfair, then there should be a re-trial and if found innocent, Anwar should be released and he and his family should be adequately compensated for the suffering and humiliation they've gone through.

Regarding going to Germany for an operation , I feel that if Anwar's condition is really that bad, he should agree to be treated here - either by Malaysian doctors or have the German specialist from AlphaKlinik conduct the operation here.

If Anwar continues to refuse treatment locally, then, sorry, I can't help but doubt the seriousness of his medical problem.

Also, his daughter Nurul and other members of his family should stop trying to bring the influence of outsiders to bear on the Malaysian government, hoping to force them to release Anwar.

For instance, Nurul speaking at the recent Democratic convention in the United States

If the Democrats win the upcoming US presidential elections and the new US president brings heavy pressure to bear on Malaysia, including imposing economic sanctions, etc, I'm sure the result will be the further alienation of Anwar.

His family, his cause and his supporters will be treated as a destructive political fringe who turn to the imperialist devils for succor when they can find little sympathy or support at home.

In short, they will be like the Ahmad Chalabis and Allawis of the world - imperialist agents despised by the bulk of their people.

I also get suspicious the present US administration continually protests Anwar's trial and conviction but hardly paid any attention to the plight of former DAP MP Lim Guan Eng , who albeit suffered a much shorter jail sentence and is out today.

As it stands, Parti Keadilan Rakyat retained only one seat and that too by the skin of its teeth, so support for Anwar and his party has already waned.

While his family may be clutching at straws by appealing to Western powers in desperation for a solution, I'd say their best course of action would be to try and settle the issue domestically.

This could be achieved by approaching Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and sympathetic ministers, members of parliament and politicians from both the ruling and opposition parties and urging them to re-open Anwar's case.

They should also work towards trying to get a pardon from the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.

Meanwhile, we should pause to ponder that if Malaysia were an Islamic state of the fundamentalist kind, Anwar would have been stoned to death by now.

On the other hand, if Anwar was detained under the draconian ISA, he most probably would be a free man back in the political fray today perhaps with a few bruises and stories to tell of his ordeal.

Conviction as a common criminal indeed is one of the cruelest ways to silence one's political opponents.