vox populi big thumbnail 'The judiciary will not be able recover from what is seen to be shame and sham of a the trial, whose verdict - as in Sodomy I has already been already predicted by all.'

Anwar to challenge judge's non-recusal, trial put off

Hibiscus: The judges are on trial not only as judges but as individuals. Already, the odds are stacked against them. They will not be able recover from what is seen to be shame and sham of a the trial, whose verdict - as in Sodomy I has already been already predicted by all.

Behind the robes they wear may hide dark spirits seen to be bent on preserving Umno's power at expense of justice. Anwar Ibrahim is seen to be the catalyst that will disrobe these judges to bear out the naked truth - that judges cannot be depended on for justice when it comes to a threat to Umno's power. In the recent past, our judges have already been seen to put aside the principle of the need to prove beyond a reasonable doubt.

One judge already went to his Maker in shame. Will Sodomy II do the same to these sitting judges? To the rakyat, the judges are seen to have failed to apply justice to the law. For the peace of this country, let us hope the rakyat are dead wrong about judges in this Sodomy II trial.

Kris: The BN uses its bloated and compliant government agencies and the unlimited amount of taxpayers' money under its control to harass and persecute the opposition. The most obvious case was that of human rights activist Irene Fernandez's trial which dragged on for years.

Now in the Anwar's Sodomy II trial, they are keeping the Pakatan Rakyat top leadership busy in the courts and are hoping to drain them of their limited financial and human resources so that they (Pakatan) not be able to oppose them effectively.

Observe how the cases get postponed for long periods when there are inconvenient foreign defence witnesses so as to impose an unbearable financial burden on the defence and cause them maximum inconvenience.

In this particular case, even if the judge gets changed, it would not make any difference as the current ‘Augustine-type judge' will be replaced by another ‘Augustine-type' judge.

Lusiapa: When a very serious allegation of bias is made by a defence counsel and well- supported by factual proof, the judge has no option but to step aside. To continue hearing the case makes a mockery of the whole judicial process where justice is paramount.

It is no exaggeration to say that what we have seen and read so far in this current trial is a glimpse of what is to follow - a re-enactment of the original saga first played out more than 11 years ago where crucial defence submissions were denied and rendered ‘irrelevant' by you-know-who.

At the same time, effective and solid rebuttals by the defence team were expunged from court records to give the prosecution the much-needed edge. Dear readers, the ultimate verdict of Sodomy II is a foregone conclusion. All the referees will again steal the show.

Malays are their own worst enemy

Perakean: It's about time the educated and informed take a stand and make ourselves heard. These Umnoputras, although they claim to represent our conscience and interest, are nothing more than parasites. They have sucked this nation dry and are continuing to do with impunity.

Under the guise of instilling Islamic values, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has allowed three women to be caned. We're becoming a Taliban-like country with repressive laws to suppress our own people. Laws to undermine the Malays who, supposedly, are the masters of the land.

What ‘Ketuanan Melayu' are they talking about? It's high time we teach these Umnoputras a lesson in good governance. Our beloved country has gone to the dogs. So rise up my fellow Malays and let's fight this tyranny.

Ipoh Mari: Some of you people will hate the writer for pointing out the painful truth but the fact remains the ‘pendatang' like my father came here with nothing from India 60 years ago and yet produced two lawyers, one engineer, one doctor, one lecturer and one ‘guru besar'.

The seeds he so painfully planted are growing into the next generation of achievers and all this done without one sen of help from the government.

I am sure there are thousand of similar stories among the ‘pendatang' throughout the country and they are all really crying out for the government to at least give our children and grandchildren a fair chance and stop messing around with their exam marks in the name of helping the bumiputera.

Malaysia's caning 'epidemic' under fire

Not Confused: Words continue to fail me in such situations. The hypocrisy is so obvious and damning against the Islamic authorities in this country. There has been no mention of the men involved in these events.

One can only assume that the authority involved holds that the ‘offence' is only on the part of the women and the men were innocent and were unable to control their lust. How can anyone in this country hold their heads high when such things are allowed to happen? Once again, Malaysia is slipping slowly down the slope to become a pariah state.

Disgusted: Recently, in December, I was in Singapore and whilst I was having conversation over dinner with a couple of my classmates who had settled there together with some Singaporeans, the discussion was centred around what was happening in this country. They made snide remarks calling the Malaysian government the Taliban of the East.

Can you blame them? And yet our Umnoputra can get angry when people call a spade a spade and want to act righteous. This is country is doomed to the backwaters of the Islamic world in the same boat as Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. Look where they stand today.

Zulkifli dodges PKR disciplinary board

Rayfire: It puzzles me why this errant MP who has repeatedly defied party directives been given so much leeway and opportunity? I think he has done more than enough share of damage to tarnish PKR's reputation by blatantly defying the instructions and proceeding with his skewed fanatical pursuit of religious supremacy stunts.

Enough is enough. The more ‘freedom' he is given, the lower our perception will be of PKR's capability to lead its team. Since he loves the media so much, why not call for a press conference and announce his dismissal from the party with immediate effect?

Those grassroots members whom he says support him can go along with him to Zulkiflistan for all we care. Be stern, PKR. Don't give these opportunists ways to hijack your struggle for their own personal gain.

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only Malaysiakini subscribers can post comments. Be part of the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now .