analysis Keadilan sent a crystal-clear message last weekend that they will continue to light the flame of reformasi and seek the release of ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.

This message was evident in the delegates' choice of leaders at the party's third annual general meeting in Kemaman. It is the party's first elections since its launch in 1999.

Most of the newly-elected leaders are reformasi supporters who in turn also support the party's merger with PRM, an indication that members are prepared to consolidate their efforts and share their power base with another coalition partner.

At a glance, the new line-up may seem like the party is now controlled by an ex-Umno team. But Umno is history, say party leaders. They are in Keadilan now, a multi-racial party. For the past three years, they have done nothing that is Umno-like, they add.

"Instead we are the ones behind street demonstrations, reformasi gatherings; we are the ones who are drenched with chemical-laced water, arrested and thrown into jail, detained under the Internal Security Act. Many of us were dismissed from our jobs, some of us lost everything.

"So that to say that it is an Umno team that has taken over the party's leadership is being simplistic and prejudicial. Those who say this are not in touch with reality," a party leader said.

A Chinese delegate who was elected into the party's supreme council, when asked if there was any possibility of these so-called ex-Umno leaders returning to Umno's fold, had this to say:

"Are you crazy? Have you seen how they were treated by the Umno government? They have been beaten, slandered, thrown into jail and their reputation dragged through the mud. They must be quite mad to want to return to Umno."

A vote for change

Party delegates are serious about wanting to make changes to the party line-up. The votes they cast are an indication of their desire for change.

Before the AGM, several groups indicated clearly their intention to capture the party's top posts. Lobbying begun two months ago by members affiliated to the Malaysian Muslim Youth Movement (Abim) and the Jamaah Islah Malaysia (JIM) - both Muslim NGOs - and the so-called Umno or pro-reformasi group. JIM eventually joined the latter, creating two factions visibly at loggerheads with one another.

The lobbying continued days running up to the AGM. Two separate lists were distributed to delegates to encourage block voting even before voting had begun.

When the results were announced for the youth, women and supreme council leadership, delegates cried 'reformasi' to indicate that a reformasi supporter had won.

What gave rise to the two factions were members' dissatisfaction with the way the party was managed by the then secretary-general Anuar Tahir.

Under his administration, sources say, the party's membership list, recruitment drive and registration of branches seemed to be a perpetual problem. The release of press statements about relevant issues was often delayed, which gave the impression that the party had no urgency when it came to problems affecting the rakyat.

Then there were episodes of intense lobbying by certain quarters against the merger with PRM before Keadilan's emergency general meeting in June. These quarters were believed to be closely-linked to Anuar or the Abim group.

The new leadership seemed bent on resolving these problems plaguing the party.

Newly-elected deputy president Abdul Rahman Othman who replaced Dr Chandra Muzaffar said he would clean up the party's membership list within three months. He added that he would also concentrate on recruitment and registration of branches to strengthen the party.

The youth wing's resolution to expedite the merger process between the two parties was passed unanimously by delegates on Sunday. It gave party leaders a three-month deadline to complete the process. They have also urged party leaders to be serious about "this very important task".

Rainbow alliance

One interesting feature of the elections was that the mostly Malay delegates appeared to have a multi-racial outlook and wished to maintain the 'rainbow alliance' within the party. For instance, two non-Malay candidates, former Youth deputy secretary Diong Chi Tzuoh and S Manivasagam obtained the highest votes in the youth exco-line up.

Several non-Malay leaders were also elected into the supreme council. Dr Lee Boon Chye and Dr A Xavier Jeyakumar bagged the fourth and fifth highest votes. Ng Lum Yong and lawyer Cheah Kah Peng from Penang are the other two non-Malays in the 20-member committee.

Former youth leader N Gobalakrishnan lost his seat in the supreme council and youth wing but this should not be seen as a slap on the face of the Indian community. He was lured into the 'wrong' team, delegates said. With pro-reformasi Xavier and Manivasagam as the other Indian candidates, the ex-ISA detainee's defeat was inevitable.

Unifying factor

Factionalism is not necessarily 'evil'. On the contrary, it may even have a strong, positive effect on a political party but with a condition - that the various factions uphold the same principles and struggle for the same cause.

Party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail who retained her post uncontested showed that she had the support of all the factions.

Together with her husband Anwar, Wan Azizah is seen as the unifying factor of the various factions in Keadilan. Which explains why, observers say, the party continues to campaign for the release of the ex-deputy premier who is serving a 15-year jail sentence in Sungai Buloh for sodomy and corruption.

The release of Anwar, who is seen as a symbol of injustice and the moral collapse of government institutions, would at least be a focal point when members start to stray or lose their purpose of staying in the party.

Observers maintain that a political party must appeal to all sectors of society, be they business people, students, academics, farmers and workers. A popular party, they say, is the only way to wrest power from the Barisan Nasional government come next general election.

Party posers

With the pending merger with PRM, it would seem that yet another faction would be born. Then again, the decades-old party may become a faction that provides the ideology, leadership, stratagems and the multi-racial and multi-religious content that the three-year-old Keadilan lacks.

What would be the Abim faction's next move now that it has failed in its bid for the party's leadership?

What would be the so-called Umno group planning next and how would they deal with the 'losers'? Would they see the group as a potential threat that could undermine the party's growth?

Wan Azizah said that there was a place for everyone, that there were no losers or winners and that everyone could contribute to the party.

Ex-leaders like Anuar, Gobalakrishnan, Syed Mustafa Kamil, Dr Muhamad Manuty and Ruslan Kassim may be roped into the party's exco-line up or made co-ordinators of various bureaus.

This may be the president's strategy in trying to keep all factions happy, as the Abim group members are close friends of Anwar who helped establish the organisation in the late 1970s.

They are also known to be great lobbyists, and their ability to mobilise the grassroots is still very much needed, especially by a party that is seeking to topple the government via parliamentary democracy.