The Malaysian government considers the Islamic Supreme Council of North America so objective as to accept its assertion that the jailed former deputy prime minister, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, handed US$10 million to North American institutions with links to terrorist groups. This is stated by no less than the deputy prime minister, Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. The New Straits Times made it its front page headline news of the day (14 February 2001). Dato' Seri Anwar is not mentioned by name, only as an ex-minister. He says the government investigated ISCNA chairman Syaikh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani's claim, found it to be true, and regurgitates it at the Chinese New Year gathering in Penang. He is now convinced Dato' Seri Anwar did indeed ensure Malaysia is known to the US government and its media as a terrorist and a militant state.

Malaysia does not have friends amongst Muslim bodies in North America. So, what is the ISCNA? It is an organisation of Muslim organisations led by the Syaikh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani. On its international advisory board sits, amongst others, Hanim Hussein, and Raja Ashman Shah. The former is the daughter of the late prime minister, Tun Hussein Onn, sister of the UMNO youth leader, Dato' Hishamuddin Hussein and cousin of the defence minister, Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak. The latter is the son of the Sultan of Perak.

There are a few other Malaysians on the list. On its website (www.islamicsupremecouncil.org), you would see numerous photographs of how he was feted during his regular visits to Malaysia, one of a dinner in the home of Toh Puan Suhaila, the widow of Tun Hussein. Amongst those present was Raja Elena, the sister of Raja Ashman Shah. Also present at this dinner is Mr Akhbar Khan, the crony of the former finance minister, Tun Daim Zainuddin, and whose niece is married to Tan Sri Halim Saad, the chairman of the bankrupt Renong Berhad.

Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani visits Malaysia regularly, most recently four months ago, is feted by those with close links to UMNO, comes well recommended to the Malaysian government. It is safe to assume that some of those close to him and close to the government would send in the odd million to keep his organisation alive. His website contains a list of his visits, with photographs.

Malaysian publicity abroad, especially after what happened to Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, is so bad that it does come a surprise when it suddenly finds unexpected support. Remember when two unknown think tanks in the United States suddenly found Dato' Seri Anwar to be the rascal Malaysia wants the world to regard him as. No one had heard of them in Washington but they happened to be friends of one Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad, the editor-in-chief of the New Straits Times.

ISCNA is the Islamic connexion to that episode. Why does the Malaysian government use less than savoury methods to prove its case? I have always argued that Dato' Seri Anwar won the moral high ground because he knew what he was doing, and this opponents did not know how to neutralise him. The government thought the Inspector-General of Police could do that with some old-fashioned karate kicks on a manacled man. It did not work. It thought it could get unknown paid analysts to come to an inescapable conclusion of the man's perfidy. That did not work. Now the Government takes what it thought was the Islamic moral high ground. Only it is not.

There is now not only mud on its face, but it also questions its commitment to an Islamic state. If it cannot get some one more credible than ISCNA to bat for it in such a contentious issue, its high moral Islamic ground cannot pass muster. But it cannot get the Islamic organisations that matter on its side to accept Dato' Seri Anwar deserves what he got; they seem to think otherwise.

It is now incumbent on the deputy prime minister to explain how and why one should believe now, in the light of information from its own website, why what the chairman of ICSNA says should be accepted without question. Meanwhile, all this episode shows is that whatever crimes Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim may have committed, what is charged and convicted of is now thrown into question. By not naming him when the deputy prime minister accused him shows that he and the government must still treat him with kid gloves. So, what was the point of making the allegation and not name the man responsible? Amateurishness and ineptness is writ large in this black operation.

M.G.G. Pillai
pillai@mgg.pc.my