Sajakkini

Elizabeth Wong : 13th Floor

When Anwar Ibrahim was released last week, there was no end to questions of whether his release signals the return of democracy and whether our judiciary is now finally independent.

A veteran rights activist remarked to some of us in jest that ‘we have democracy now’. It was the first time we have had a demonstration in an air conditioned place, as we stood shoulder to shoulder with thousands of reformists and well-wishers at the airport to catch a glimpse of Anwar.

Everyone loves a quick fix but sadly there isn’t such a thing as instant democracy. As much as we would like there to be, just as much as we adore our instant noodles, there needs to be a lot more ingredients to fill us up than the release of our most famous political prisoner.

After all, if Aung San Suu Kyi is released from house arrest, do we pat the backs of the generals for a job well-done and declare that democracy has returned to Burma?

A small development

The judiciary in the case of Anwar may have corrected one glaring and overdue injustice, but whether this affirms the independence of our judiciary, or if the judicary will continue its streak to restore public confidence remains to be seen.

We have witnessed a handful of landmark judgments in the last six years, but none warranted this sort of affirmation. The public, and surprisingly, the market euphoria that followed Anwar’s release should indicate to the government that expectations remain high.

Upon Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi’s ascension to power ten months ago, a memorandum signed by 70 civil society organisations, containing eleven preconditions was released. It called for, among others, an overhaul and reconstitution of public institutions, a review of draconian laws and situations and the amelioration of race and class relations.

It’s on those eleven preconditions that civil society should judge the current administration and whether the seemingly new face of it will live up to the expectations of the public. Anwar’s freedom is but the first of many litmus tests ahead for the government.

ELIZABETH WONG has been involved in human rights since her student days in Sydney. She is currently the secretary-general of the National Human Rights Society (Hakam), a member of the Suaram secretariat and was a human rights fellow of Carnegie Council for Ethics and International Affairs (2002-03). ‘13th Floor‘ will attempt to look into the paradoxes and intricacies of democracy and politics. In her spare time, she revives her search for Dante (the lost cat). She is still leaving the option of playing guitar in a loud band open.

Political soothsayers are still aplenty and are generous with their predictions of the opposition’s future and where Anwar will go. Anwar and the opposition may have an effect on the political landscape, but they do not have the power to make laws or policies.

The microscope must remain trained always on the ruling coalition and its policies and whether it will be responsive to public expectations and demands.

These would include the current campaign against corruption that seems to have gone quiet - as the graffiti in the city reminds us everyday ‘who and when will the mysterious 18 be charged?’. Also needed is genuine reform of our public institutions, to ensure that no person and government will be able coerce them to do their bidding now and in the future.

In other words, when the emotional and political excitement stemming from the release of Anwar eventually ebbs, what will the government deliver next? Or when Abdullah Badawi is no longer the Prime Minister, how stable and independent will our instruments of check and balance be?

A long way to go

Rushed editorials and op-eds have also been quick to proclaim the need to heal the nation and to put this shameful episode behind us. Yet none of them pointed out that both of Anwar’s trials were farcical from the start - thus closure too must be tempered with justice.

Where is justice for the 29 associates of Anwar who were detained, tortured and broken under the Internal Security Act (ISA)? Where is justice for the hundreds arrested and assaulted, and countless more terrorised by our Royal Malaysian Police Force?

Where is justice for the six reformists kept behind barbed wire for more than two years under spurious charges, without trial?

One thing is certain; awareness and debates on fundamental freedoms of Malaysians have reached every home thanks to the political trigger of 1998.

Almost everyone in the country knows and has an opinion on the ISA, what constitutes a free and fair trial, and the rights of an incarcerated person including that of his or her right to medical treatment.

If there is one lesson to be learnt from the whole Anwar affair, it is that we, the rakyat, hold the keys to change and reform in Malaysia. If not for the mass public dissension and six long years of campaigning, Anwar would have been left in prison.

Justice doesn’t come swiftly or easily, and it takes more than one man or woman to bring about change in this country. The prime minister may have received accolades for the release of Anwar, but one should look to those unsung heroes and ordinary citizens who didn’t think much about politics before 1998, yet became the conscience of the movement to free Anwar.

They highlighted at every opportunity that a grave injustice had to be rectified, despite the sneers and fruitless pontification from an increasingly forgetful public. They evolved from sympathisers of Anwar to advocates of human rights, even putting most political and NGO activists to shame.

Reformists such as Nasir, Pak Din, Pak Lang, Pushpa, Tan, Marvin, Nora, Badrul and many more embodied perseverance and sacrifice. They are the ones who taught us a humbling lesson of hope and commitment. Most of all, they reminded us that the road towards reform is long and winding, and we have only arrived at a crossroad.

Fast food democracy