PKR has countered the government's argument that no country in the world will allow a convicted person to attend Parliament as ignorant, citing Ukraine's experience.

 

"The (government's) claim that no country has ever allowed a political detainee to attend parliamentary sessions shows the shallow mindedness of certain individuals in the administration," said PKR deputy Youth chief Afif Bahardin today.

 

Afif said on Oct 11, 2011, Ukraine's opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko was allowed to attend Parliament even though she was sentenced to seven years jail for abuse of power.

 

Tymoshenko was convicted for involvement in a natural gas deal with Russia in 2009.

 

"However, she was allowed to attend the country's parliamentary sessions.

 

"This is the right of a political detainee, especially when there is no rule or a final decision to disqualify an individual as a member of parliament," said Afif in a statement.

 

PKR leaders have cried foul against Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for pushing the task of allowing PKR de facto leader and Permatang Pauh MP Anwar Ibrahim to attend Parliament to the Prisons Department.

 

Furthermore, PKR lawyers N Surendran and Latheefa Koya complained that the department had furnished "no reason whatsoever" for the refusal and called the decision "arbitrary".

 

'Denial proof of conspiracy'

Anwar remains Permatang Pauh MP pending the outcome of his royal pardon after being slapped with a five-year jail sentence for sodomy.

He was acquitted in January 2012 but the government secured a guilty verdict in a two-day Court of Appeal hearing just before the opposition leader was to run for the Kajang state seat in Selangor.

 

The Federal Court upheld the verdict in its decision last month.

Afif said Zahid's denial of Anwar's right to attend Parliament only vindicated PKR's claim that the case was politically motivated.

 

"The minister's latest action is proof that Umno and BN deliberately chose to undertake this malicious political conspiracy in order to deny Anwar's right to represent Malaysian citizens (in Parliament).

 

"The fact is Umno and BN are too afraid to confront him and this is an attempt to block him from voicing criticism of the BN government," he added, challenging Zahid to explain in public why his ministry denied Anwar the right to attend the coming sitting.