Singapore
silent on Anwar conviction
Reuters. April 14, 1999.
THE corruption conviction of Malaysia's sacked finance minister
Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesday was met with relative silence from next-door
neighbour Singapore. The city-state has been tight-lipped on developments
in Malaysia since the firing and arrest of Anwar in September.
Anwar was sentenced to six years in jail on Wednesday after his conviction, triggering violent protests in Kuala Lumpur.
A spokeswoman for the foreign affairs ministry told Reuters Singapore was unlikely to have an official comment as it was an internal matter of another nation.
Singapore's relations with its northern neighbour, often rocky despite heavy bilateral trade and investment, went through a particularly rough patch in 1998.
But there have been recent signs of improvement which analysts say Singapore would be reluctant to see reversed.
Simon Tay, a law professor and a nominated member of parliament without party affiliation, said the reluctance to speak on the Anwar case was normal.
"Singapore's silence over Anwar is not a deafening silence. This is the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) policy of trying to respect the party in power," Tay said.
He added that differences on such issues as Malaysian supply of water to Singapore and siting of customs and immigrations facilities could be exacerbated by official comment now.
"My reading is that our government has been quite responsive to (Malaysian Prime Minister) Mahathir (Mohamad) and this silence leads one to think that Singapore...remains more comfortable with the UMNO Party," which Mahathir leads.
In contrast, the Singapore public was divided over developments since the September arrest, which included Anwar's being beaten in jail and emerging with a black eye.
"Singaporeans are rather split," Tay said, "Since the black eye, they've felt great sympathy for Anwar and there's no great love for Dr Mahathir."
Bruce Gale, regional manager for the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy, said the government's silence reflected caution about appearing to support one side or the other in Malaysia's political travails.
"Singapore has to resist the temptation to get involved, because if it does, it risks a backlash," Gale said.
"What concerns Singapore is whether this may have an impact on investment in Malaysia, and in turn growth, and ultimately on Singapore."