KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 15 — The United States is continuing to meddle in Malaysia’s administration with its views on Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Umno-owned broadsheet Utusan Malaysia said in an editorial piece today and compared the action to “sodomising” the country’s legal and judiciary systems.

In its Sunday column by its editors, the Malay paper pronounced Anwar guilty not just for sodomy but also for bringing the interference of foreign powers, after the conviction decision was upheld by the Federal Court.

“Big powers such as the US wants to now ‘sodomise’ our legal and judiciary systems although the majority of Malaysians agreed with the court’s decision,” said Awang Selamat, the pseudonym used by its editors.

“For Awang, Anwar not only has a sexual criminal offence but also inviting the meddling of foreign powers, an offence which is far bigger. Our sovereignty cannot be substituted.”

The column said the interference had been a result of Anwar’s lobbying for over a decade, by allegedly slandering Putrajaya in order to get support to save his skin.

Last Tuesday, the Federal Court upheld the Court of Appeal’s conviction of Anwar for sodomising his former political aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, also keeping a five-year jail sentence.

The decision also leaves the Pakatan Rakyat opposition pact effectively without a head.

In the days since, several countries including the US, Australia and Canada have lodged a complain against Putrajaya for its decision.

Screencap of the online petition.

An online petition urging the US government to negotiate the release of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has also crossed its halfway mark today, collecting over 50,000 signatures just five days since its launch.

The petition was filed on the White House’s online petitions page under the issues of “civil rights and liberties, foreign policy, human rights” just moments after Anwar’s conviction was announced last Tuesday and aims to collect 100,000 signatures by March 12. 

On Thursday, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad laughed off Washington’s criticism of Anwar’s second sodomy conviction, saying the White House was only disappointed with the verdict because their “agent” has been imprisoned.

He said the White House’s response to the decision was expected since Anwar, who is still federal opposition leader, was seen as the US’ “agent for regime change”.