Anwar verdict: guilty; 9 years

KUALA LUMPUR - Former Malaysian finance minister Anwar Ibrahim was found guilty of sodomy yesterday and sentenced to nine years in jail at the end of a trial that split the country and spurred calls for democratic reform.

High Court Judge Arifin Jaka ruled that Anwar, aged 52, and his adopted brother, Sukma Darmawan, 39, were guilty of sodomy.

"I'm satisfied the prosecution has proven its case against both accused beyond reasonable doubt and therefore find both the accused guilty as charged," the judge told the court. There are no juries in Malaysia.

Both accused plan to appeal against the verdict, delivered as police stood guard outside the courthouse, watching hundreds of Anwar's supporters who had gathered in the area.

The judge said Anwar would start a nine-year prison sentence after he finishes a six-year jail term for corruption, which began in April 1999. Anwar had faced up to 20 years in the sodomy case.

Sukma was given six years in prison and four strokes of a cane but his sentence was suspended pending appeal.

Caning is limited to convicts aged 49 years and younger, sparing Anwar, who turns 53 tomorrow.

Prisoners who show good behaviour in Malaysia generally serve two-thirds of their jail terms. Anwar, who was sacked in 1998, could therefore end the corruption jail term in 2003 and the sodomy sentence in April 2009.

Under Malaysian law, Anwar cannot hold public office for five years from the date of release from prison. That means he could not hold office before 2014, at age 66. The full 15 years would keep him in the political wilderness until 2019.

Anwar appeared to shrug off the guilty verdict.

"What's new?" he told relatives after the judge ruled. Before the judge announced the sentence, Anwar said he expected a six-year jail term.

The former Prime Minister-in-waiting will appeal against the verdict, defence lawyer Christopher Fernando said.

Fernando said he was "shocked, flabbergasted" by the verdict.

"The decision is utterly mind-boggling given all the evidence which favours the defendant.

"Given the evidence, he deserves an acquittal."

Defence counsel Sankara Nair said Anwar was calm but his family "deeply shocked."

Anwar testified in both of his trials that Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and his associates had framed him in a sex scandal to stave off a possible leadership challenge.

Mahathir has denied the accusation, saying Anwar was morally unfit to succeed him.

Anwar and Sukma Darmawan were jointly accused of sodomising Azizan Abu Bakar, the Anwar family's former driver, one night between January and March 1993. The prosecution twice rewrote the charges to change the year of the alleged sodomy offences.

Human rights group Suaram expressed grave concern over the verdict, saying it eroded public confidence in the judiciary.

"The court case of these two men has been plagued from the start with inconsistency and controversy," Suaram said in a statement, calling the verdict shocking but not unexpected.

Earlier, at least two people were arrested as a small group of anti-Government protesters gathered outside the courthouse before the verdict was delivered.

Since Anwar was sacked in September 1998, supporters have periodically taken to the streets to demand an end to Mahathir's 19-year rule.

Bystanders shouted "reformasi" - the rally cry of Anwar's supporters seeking democratic reform - when Anwar's wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, arrived.

Wan Azizah, who heads the opposition Parti Keadilan Nasional (National Justice Party), said: "We hope for the best and prepare for the worst."

- REUTERS