ANWAR’S PHYSICAL CONTACT BID FAILS
Sg Buloh prison director’s decision reasonable, say appellate judges
DATUK Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his family once again failed in their challenge of a decision by the Sungai Buloh prison director disallowing him to have physical contact with family members during their visits to the prison.
This follows the Court of Appeal’s dismissal yesterday of the appeal brought by Anwar and his family against the High Court’s refusal of their judicial review application.
A three-member panel of judges, comprising justices Datuk Ahmadi Asnawi, Datuk Vernon Ong Lam Kiat and Datuk Suraya Othman, held that the appeal brought by Anwar and nine other appellants had no merit.
Justice Ahmadi said the letter of the Sungai Buloh prison director, dated March 14, 2016, rejecting Anwar and his family’s request to have physical contact during visits, was reasonable as it did not contravene prison rules.
“The letter states that it would consider the request on a caseby-case basis. This is not unreasonable and disproportionate.”
The panel made the ruling after hearing submissions from lawyer N. Surendran, representing the appellants, and senior Federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, acting for the Sungai Buloh prison director, Prisons commissioner-general and home minister, representing the respondents.
Besides Anwar, 70, the other appellants are his wife, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, 65; their four daughters, Nurul Izzah, 37; Nurul Nuha, 34; Nurul Ilham, 30, and Nurul Iman, 27; Nurul Izzah’s children, Raja Nur Safiyah Raja Ahmad Shahrir Iskandar, 11, and Raja Ahmad Harith, 9; and Nurul Nuha’s sons, Sulaimaan Mohamad Khairul, 6, and Yahya, 5.
Anwar and his family had claimed that during the visits, they were separated by a glass screen and could speak only through the telephone.
Anwar, who is serving a five-year sentence after being found guilty of sodomising former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, is allowed visitors once every three weeks. He is expected to be released on June 8.