Anwar Ibrahim’s ‘Sodomy II’ trial will only start tomorrow, but both the prosecution and the defence have already gone the extra mile outside the court to insist that their respective arguments will prevail.

NONE Solicitor-General II Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden said he is confident that the hearing will begin as scheduled tomorrow afternoon, following a day of stops and starts.

“The prosecution will prove its case through the chemist report, as semen specimens were found on the victim (Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan),” he said.

Yusof, the third-most senior official in the Attorney-General's Chambers, said the medical reports were just preliminary reports that involved the physical examination.

“Specimens were retrieved from the victim's anus. This will prove that penetration did indeed take place,” he said in relation to defence claims that the prosecution does not have a case.

“What the defence has are merely initial reports by the doctors, but this does not include the chemist report on the specimens including the semen that was found.”

However, he stopped short of saying to whom the specimens have been traced.

Yusof said the prosecution would prove its case when the doctor and the chemist testify, as they are expected to testify that penetration did take place.

Referring to a defence claim that one medical report indicated that

Saiful had been penetrated by a plastic object, Yusof clarified that the impression could have been gained because of illegible writing.

“Some of the writing of the Pusrawi doctor's report cannot be comprehended,” he added.

azlan When applying for a stay of the trial earlier today, Karpal Singh - another of Anwar’s lawyers - submitted that there was no sodomy, as penetration was due to a plastic object.

Anwar’s lawyer Sankara Nair had told reporters that the Pusrawi Hospital report by Dr Mohd Osman Abdul Hamid indicates no sign of penetration.

He said the report suggests that Saiful had suffered constipation for a week, termed ‘tenesmus’.

“The report also states there was no rectal pain and no rectal bleeding. There was pain when passing motion but there was no blood in the stool,” said Sankara.

“The patient (Saiful) told the doctor he had been assaulted by a person with the introduction of a (piece of) plastic into the anus. He, however, did not state who the assailant was.”

It has been previously reported that Mohd Osman stands by his medical report that there was no incidence of sodomy, and has also made a statutory declaration to this effect.

‘Tainted specimens’

Anwar, meanwhile, claimed that the specimens allegedly retrieved from Saiful were tainted as they had been exposed.

“We have proof of this and we have a strong case (for) my defence,” he told reporters.

najib tun razak Asked if he is a major political threat to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak - in relation to his claim that the sodomy charge is part of a political conspiracy against him - Anwar quipped that he is merely an opposition leader who is trying to unify the opposition parties.

“If something happens to me, we have other plans (for the unification process to continue). I hope Najib and Rosmah will be brave enough to testify over their alleged involvement.

“Why did they meet Saiful two days before he lodged a report. Did they offer a scholarship to Saiful? All this is mere fabrication of evidence.

“This was done by Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail in the ‘black eye’ incident and now it is happening with Yusof in this case. All this is part of the conspiracy.”

Anwar has instructed his lawyers to subpoena Najib and Rosmah as witnesses, following the premier’s admission that Saiful had met him before lodging the police report.

 

NONE The proceedings today also saw a return to the Reformasi era of 10 years ago, as PKR and opposition supporters gathered at the Kuala Lumpur High Court complex.

Supporters shouted “Reformasi” and “Hidup Anwar” (long live Anwar), “Hancur Najib, Hancur Rosmah” (down with Najib, down with Rosmah).

All this happened under the watchful eyes of the police, who arrived early to control the crowd, but they largely refrained from intervening in the impromptu rally.