The biggest political threat to Malaysia's government is behind bars after a court upheld a sodomy conviction for opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, but more thorny problems confront Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Anwar, jailed for five years on Tuesday on a charge he called politically motivated, has for years represented the greatest challenge to Najib's coalition, which has ruled the multi-ethnic Southeast Asian country since independence in 1957.
The bespectacled former finance minister and deputy prime minister cemented a three-party opposition alliance which took on the coalition at the last polls in 2013, costing the ruling bloc the popular vote in its worst-ever electoral performance.
Deserted at the polls by ethnic minority Chinese and urban voters, Najib's party will now face the fallout of sharper polarization over Anwar's jailing, amid widespread perceptions that his prosecution was motivated by political vengeance.
"There's something rotten about the whole thing," said former cabinet minister Zaid Ibrahim. "It's not good for the country and democracy, never mind Najib." Full story
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Anwar, jailed for five years on Tuesday on a charge he called politically motivated, has for years represented the greatest challenge to Najib's coalition, which has ruled the multi-ethnic Southeast Asian country since independence in 1957.
The bespectacled former finance minister and deputy prime minister cemented a three-party opposition alliance which took on the coalition at the last polls in 2013, costing the ruling bloc the popular vote in its worst-ever electoral performance.
Deserted at the polls by ethnic minority Chinese and urban voters, Najib's party will now face the fallout of sharper polarization over Anwar's jailing, amid widespread perceptions that his prosecution was motivated by political vengeance.
"There's something rotten about the whole thing," said former cabinet minister Zaid Ibrahim. "It's not good for the country and democracy, never mind Najib." Full story
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- Malaysian prime minister's wife Rosmah in scandals galore...
- Sordid sex-murder affair in Malaysia: who killed Altantuya Shaariibuu?
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