The motion by a group of lawyers dubbed G100 to censure outgoing Bar Council president Christopher Leong was overwhelmingly defeated at the Malaysian Bar annual general assembly today.

A total of 1,194 lawyers present voted against the motion while only 161 voted in favour of G100.

The motion wanted Leong to retract his statement that the jailing of Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim was a persecution, and to apologise for it.

The debate on the motion took close to two hours and included an explanation from Leong himself.

The G100 motion was proposed by Faidhur Rahman Abdul Hadi and seconded by Aidil bin Khalid.

A lawyer, who did not want to be named, said Leong was firm about not apologising.

"Leong said he will not apologise for the misunderstanding of his critics.

"His statement was never an attack on the judiciary, like what the G100 thought it was," the lawyer added.

The AGM is a closed-door event, with only lawyers allowed to attend.

G100 does not accept Leong's explanation

In an immediate response, G100 spokesperson Abdul Aziz Abd Rahman expressed dissatisfaction with the outcome and added he did not accept Leong's explanation that his statement was directed at the prosecution team.

"The AGM rejected the motion because they agreed that Leong was not in contempt of court.

"But when we read his statement, we think that he had even disrespect for the constitution by making such remarks after the court ruling," Aziz ( right ) told journalists outside the AGM hall in Kuala Lumpur.

He said G100 would discuss its next course of action but he also hoped the authorities will investigate Leong’s statement.

"The authorities can take action under the Sedition Act or Penal Code. It is up to the authorities to decide whether there was contempt of court," Aziz said.

However, he added, G100 would not, for now, lodge a police report against Leong.

Leong had condemned Anwar's conviction after the Federal Court on Feb 10 upheld his sodomy conviction and five-year jail sentence.

Anwar has maintained that the charge against him is politically motivated.