Malaysia Anti Mahathir Demonstrations

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(18 Oct 1998) Natural Sound Several thousand demonstrators have marched through the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur demanding an end to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's 17-year rule. They dispersed under police pressure. The demonstrators also demanded the release of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is in detention on charges of sodomy and corruption. His wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who has vowed to continue his reform movement, encouraged supporters with a drive past. About 3 - thousand anti-Mahathir protestors began their demonstration on the roadside on Saturday demanding the resignation of prime minister Mohamad Mahathir. Defying a police order, the wife of dismissed minister Anwar Ibrahim lent her support to the protest by waving from her car as she drove past. The couple's 18-year-old daughter, Nurul Izzah, accompanied her. Wan Azizah, who says she will continue the reform movement of her husband, has been prohibited by police from holding rallies and meetings at her house in a Kuala Lumpur suburb. The demonstration then moved onto the palace of the constitutional monarch, and asked the king to dissolve parliament, release Anwar from detention and stop the abuse of human rights. The protestors eventually dispersed after police began making arrests. Anwar was initially held under the draconian Internal Security Act which allows for detention without trial. He has since been moved to a regular remand prison. Seventy-two year old Mahathir, who's ruled Malaysia for 17 years, fired Anwar on September 2. The former deputy was subsequently charged with 10 counts of corruption and illegal homosexual acts which he has denied. His trial begins on November the second.

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