Malaysia Crisis

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  Ê 
      Police detain Anwar as Malaysian political crisis erupts

      Sun 20 Sep 98 - 14:25 GMT 

      KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 (AFP) - Malaysian police on Sunday detained
deposed
      deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim after storming his Kuala Lumpur
home,
      witnesses said.

      Dozens of riot police surrounded a police van as Anwar was led away.

      Anwar waved to a crowd of around 1,000 supporters who chanted
"reform" as he was
      taken away in the van under police escort.

      Malaysia's political crisis boiled over on the day that Queen
Elizabeth II arrived for a
      four day state visit. The country is also hosting the 70-nation
Commonwealth Games.

      Anwar was taken away two hours after dozens of armed police kicked
down the door of
      his home in the suburbs of the capital and broke up a press
conference that he was
      holding.

      The residence in the Kuala Lumpur suburbs was sealed off.

      Members of his family were refused entry and lawyers were kept away
for more than an
      hour.

      Clashes broke out earlier between Anwar supporters and police
outside the official
      residence of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Tear gas was fired to
break up the
      crowd.

      That incident followed a rally by between 40,000 and 50,000 people
in central Kuala
      Lumpur at which Anwar renewed demands that Mahathir stand down.

      Anwar is leading a campaign to force Mahathir to stand down.

      He in turns faces allegations ranging from sexual misconduct to
treason that police are
      investigating. Two associates were jailed for six months on
Saturday. The national
      Bernama news agency said they admitted letting Anwar sodomise them.

                                                                  ©AFP
1998