Resistance is not futile - so said Star Trek's Jean-Luc Picard in First Contact , vowing to battle a ruthless part-organic, part-robotic species - the Borg - from 'assimilating' (read: take over) the human race.

"They invade our space and we fall back," decried the USS Enterprise commander. "They assimilate entire worlds and we fall back. Never again, the line must be drawn here! This far, no further."

Malaysians, who have been appalled by the way our judiciary was mangled and mutilated over the years, could have said the same when ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim was freed on Sept 2. Yes, resistance is not futile.

But it did seem futile when truncheon-wielding police ran riot and drenched reformasi protestors with skin-burning chemical-laced water. It did seem futile when key organisers, including malaysiakini columnist Hishamuddin Rais, were detained without trial .

And it did seem futile when the government-controlled media unleashed its spin-doctors to, yes, 'assimilate' Malaysians into a Borg-style 'one collective mind'.

Many did give up. Some, however, pressed on. Those who persevered - the Anwaristas, the alternative media, opposition parties, NGOs - should now stand and take a bow. But for them, there would be no pressure for reforms. Period.

Indeed, Anwar's freedom is not just their victory - it is a victory for all Malaysians.

Bury the Anwar ghost?

As expected, the government-controlled media has been quick to rework the spin. We should move on, they said. It's time to close a bizarre chapter in our history. And Malaysians can do well to bury the Anwar ghost.

Hang on ... not so fast. Before we bury the ghost, we need to dissect the battered corpse. For after all, the media was the handmaiden of Anwar's political downfall.

They were key actors in the orgy of smear against Anwar, much like a pack of mongrels in a feeding frenzy. Perhaps today's opinion writers should dig up their own archives and peer at what they had written about the former deputy premier.

Surely we must find out what had went wrong, and what lessons we can learn from that sad episode. Otherwise, this tragedy will but have to repeat itself

As for Anwar, we hope he too has learned his lesson. He once equated reforming Umno akin to cleaning the septic tank from the inside. He didn't heed his own advice. But he can do better now to help build a credible opposition so that the country can benefit from a reliable check-and-balance system. That, of course, means forgetting his ambition of becoming PM - at least for now.

Much has been said about Anwar rejoining Umno. Given the present political climate, that's out of the question - he would betray the trust of those who staunchly stood by him in his darkest hours. More so, potential rivals in Umno would fight tooth and nail against his return.

This is especially true for the Mahathirists in the party - deputy president Najib Abdul Razak, Wanita chief Rafidah Aziz and Youth chief Hishammuddin Hussien Onn. Not forgetting the man who bagged the second highest number of nominations in the Umno supreme council race, Aziz Shamsuddin ( photo ) - a former Mahathir aide and widely considered the 'grand vizier' in the plot against Anwar.

Old Anwar, new Anwar

Still, before he can move on, Anwar must first answer niggling questions on his 16 years in government and the Barisan Nasional. Indeed, he was part of the system he now criticises.

Like Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Anwar had stood idly by when their then boss assaulted the judiciary. Like Abdullah, he had backed Dr Mahathir Mohamad in the ISA crackdown on 100-odd dissidents in 1987. Like Abdullah, he turned a blind eye to the maladies of corruption and abuse of power.

However, unlike Abdullah, he can claim to have defied Mahathir at the tail-end of his government career. Clearly, Anwar has emerged from jail stronger - his six year stint at Sungai Buloh is another stripe on his sleeve adding to the two years he spent in Kamunting when he was a youth leader in the '70s.

But which Anwar will we see when he returns from his surgery in Munich - the old Anwar or the new Anwar?

That question aside, there is much to do.

We still have an attorney-general - the country's top legal officer - whose reputation has been sullied by allegations of fabricating evidence . We have a slew of judges publicly perceived as dishonourable but still occupying the highest benches in our judiciary.

The police, now officially branded as corrupt , is still very much in denial. Big-time corporate deals are still being done on a know-who, rather than know-how, basis.

The pressure for reforms will continue, thanks to the handful few, the vocal minority (not the silent majority) who resisted from being 'Borg-tised' by the authorities. They gallantly drew the line and boldly went where none had gone before in telling the powers-that-be, 'this far, no further'.

Many are nameless, faceless Malaysians who have made enormous sacrifices to build a new Malaysia. History may not record their contribution, but that really doesn't matter. They derive their silent satisfaction from Malaysia becoming a normal country again.

The fight to reclaim our nation has begun - either with or without Anwar.