Anwar acquitted in Sodomy case

KUALA LUMPUR, - A Malaysian high court judge acquitted opposition leader and former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of sodomy crime over insufficient evidence on Monday, capping an almost two-year long trial proceedings.

Earlier, several thousand rallied outside a court in Kuala Lumpur to show support for Anwar Ibrahim, opposition leader and Malaysia's former deputy prime minister.

The session was due to begin at 9:00 am, but some supporters arrived at the Kuala Lumpur High Court before 6.

They chanted slogans and held pro-Anwar placards as the opposition leader arrived at the court, accompanied by his family, including his wife and all six children.

Despite several hundred reports against the rally were lodged across the country, Malaysian police gave green light by allowing opposition and Anwar's supporter to assemble at a parking lot in front of the court complex, where heavy police force and barriers were deployed on Monday.

The Opposition had said earlier it would draw 100,000 supporters to rally for Anwar. Azmin Ali, deputy president of Anwar's People's Justice Party, promised that the gathering would be peaceful.

Anwar is tried for allegedly sodomising his 27-year-old former assistant at a condominium unit in Kuala Lumpur in 2008.

This was the second time Anwar is charged with sodomy, a crime in the Muslim-majority country.

In 1998, Anwar was dismissed as deputy prime minister and later convicted for sodomy and corruption.

He was released in September 2004 and resumed his political career as an opposition leader, leading the opposition parties to hold five states in Malaysia's 2008 general election.

Malaysia's opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (C) and his wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (L) arrive at the courthouse for the verdict of his sodomy trial in Kuala Lumpur January 9, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]