Jailed ex-deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim's final bid to set aside his conviction for a sodomy offence will be heard by the highest court in the land next month.

His lawyer Sankara Nair told malaysiakini that the Federal Court has set May 10 to hear Anwar's appeal to overturn the sodomy conviction and nine-year jail sentence.

"The court has also fixed the same day to hear Anwar's application for bail which was filed after the Court of Appeal rejected his earlier application for bail and stay of execution pending disposal of this appeal," said Sankara when contacted today.

The court will also hear a similar appeal and bail application by Anwar's co-accused and adopted brother Sukma Darmawan Sasmitaat Madja, on the same day.

On Aug 8, 2000 High Court judge Arifin Jaka had found Anwar guilty of sodomising Azizan Abu Bakar, the former driver of his wife and opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat (Keadilan) president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and sentenced the politician to nine years jail.

He also sentenced Sukma to six years jail and ordered the Indonesian-born businessman to be whipped four times for abetting Anwar.

On April 18 last year, Court of Appeal judges Pajan Singh Gill, Richard Malanjum and Hashim Yusof upheld Arifin's decision stating that there was no miscarriage of justice in the trial as claimed by the defence.

Anwar's repeated attempts for bail was also rejected by the Court of Appeal forcing him to file a fresh application at the Federal Court.

Family stays hopeful

If the duo fail to set aside the conviction, Anwar would only be freed in 2009 while Sukma would have to undergo his whipping sentence.

Anwar's eldest daughter Nurul Izzah said the family remained hopeful that the jailed politician would be granted bail and subsequently acquitted although the current political climate shows that the chances are very slim.

"It's very difficult to expect that my father and Uncle Sukma will get an impartial hearing. The sole fact that the appeal and bail application were set just after the general election in itself reeks of suspicion. If the powers-that-be can tamper with the date, can we believe that the judiciary is impartial?" she said when contacted.

Nurul said despite Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's repeated statements that Anwar is no longer an issue in Malaysian politics, it is unlikely that the premier would send a positive message to the judiciary to be independent in handling the appeal.

"He (Abdullah) has said so much on combating corruption but has done little to translate those words into action. Our hope just gets dimmer as time passes," she said.

Echoing Nurul's views, Anwar's former political secretary Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor said Abdullah's promise for reforms were mere political talks to build false hopes to win the recent general election.

"His statement that Anwar's case is just another ordinary criminal one was irresponsible and had wilfully turned a blind eye towards the country's judicial crisis," he said when contacted.

"It's the government's final chance to rectify such severe discredit against the judiciary and it's really up to them whether they are bold enough to do so..but I have yet to see any positive signs from Abdullah."

Building named after Anwar

Ezam, who is also Keadilan Youth chief, said it has been exactly six years since the High Court sentenced Anwar on April 14, 1999 to four years jail for corrupt practices.

"We must continue to remember 'Black 14' as it would strengthen our struggle for reforms in the judicial system. We still have a long way to go in our mission to uphold justice," he pointed out.

Ezam announced that to commemorate Black 14, Keadilan will organise a function in Taman Seri Putih, Seremban tonight which will be attended by Wan Azizah. The Keadilan president is expected to launch a new building named after Anwar.

Meanwhile, the Free Anwar Movement lashed out at the prime minister for what they described as his failure to clean up the judiciary whose independence has been seriously doubted following the allegedly slanted trials of Anwar and Sukma.

"The continued incarceration of Anwar would only strengthen the impression that Abdullah's promises to reform government policies were just mere political talk. It proves that he is not bold enough to change the obtuse style of administration set by his predecessor Dr Mahathir Mohamad," the movement said in a statement today.

Mahathir sacked the charismatic and popular Anwar in 1998. The latter claimed that the charges instituted against him were trumped up to prevent him from making a challenge for the premiership but this has been denied.

The United States considers Anwar a political prisoner and has condemned the Appeal Court's decision to deny him bail.

Abdullah, who took over from Mahathir last October defended Malaysia's judiciary, saying that most Malaysians believed the judges were independent.