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Anwar backers say scrapping of invite to Mahathir is major snub
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 (AFP) - Supporters of Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday hailed
the "courageous" decision by a leading US Islamic society, which has withdrawn an
invitation to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to address its convention.
The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) says it withdrew its invitation because
"dozens and dozens" of members are unhappy about Mahathir's treatment of the jailed
ex-deputy premier.
ISNA secretary general Sayyid M. Syeed told AFP Monday that protests might be staged
if Mahathir appeared at the gathering in Rosemont, Illinois from September 1-4.
Anwar was convicted on August 8 of sodomy and jailed for nine years.
The sentence will not start until he has served a six-year sentence passed in April
1999 for abuse of official powers, meaning he could stay in jail until 2014.
The Free Anwar Campaign praised ISNA "for its courageous stand."
"This move has put Mahathir and the Malaysian government in an awkward situation and
is a major snub to Mahathir who fancies himself as a hero to the Muslim and Third
Worlds," the campaign said in a statement.
The verdict and sentence on Anwar, seen by some overseas leaders as politically
motivated, sparked outrage at home and abroad.
The government says the courts are independent and Anwar received a fair trial.
"Throughout the world the general consensus among Muslims and non-Muslims is that they
consider it (the Anwar prosecution) a cooked-up event," Syeed told AFP by telephone.
He said his society saw Malaysia as a role model of how Muslims could co-exist
harmoniously with other religions.
"If a personal vendetta results in the failure of that vision it would be a disaster
and an undoing of (Mahathir's) own heritage," Syeed said.
Anwar says top politicians led by the premier plotted to frame him because he planned
to expose corruption and was seen as a political threat to Mahathir.
The government denies any conspiracy and says it cannot interfere in the legal process.
The Free Anwar Campaign said Mahathir's "propaganda machinery" had failed to convince
people of Anwar's guilt.
"In this age of information technology lies cannot be perpetuated and the truth cannot
be suppressed," it added.
"ISNA's decision is a testimony to the fact that the world knows the truth and has
taken a strong position accordingly."
Angelfire for your free web-based e-mail. http://www.angelfire.com
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