Nurul Nuha Anwar committed to free father, driven by injustice against him

Nurul Nuha Anwar stands with a photo of the family taken in happier times. She remains committed to get her father Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim freed from the prison sentence he is serving following his conviction for sodomy. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Najjua Zulkefli, February 21, 2015.Slightly more than 16 years ago, when her famous father was first incarcerated, Nurul Nuha Anwar, then only 15, was confused and heartbroken. Fast-forward to 2015, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is bundled off to jail again, but this time Nuha the adult is seething with rage as she seeks justice for him.

In an interview with The Malaysian Insider recently, the 31-year-old mother of two cut a spirited figure, in contrast to the grief-stricken person she was on February 10 when the Federal Court decided to uphold her father's conviction and five-year jail sentence for sodomy.

"Back in 1999, I was only 15 and very confused, wondering why this was happening to my family. My sisters were really young at that time," she said, referring to when Anwar was convicted for corruption, following his sacking from his position as deputy prime minister the previous year.

Nuha said the same despair and confusion came over her when the verdict in Anwar's sodomy case was read out 12 days ago at the apex court.

"It was like 1999 all over again because we did not expect this. It is, after all, the Federal Court. The law is very clear about proving something beyond reasonable doubt."

"I think papa was more prepared for this. For me, I did not want to think of any negative things because of our past experience.

Nuha, the second of six siblings, shares her family's disappointment with the judiciary and is now the face of the "March to Freedom” campaign, a new initiative launched last week to pressure the government to free Anwar from prison.

"I am very committed and focused on the struggle. My main focus now is to free my father, who is a political prisoner, from this unjust incarceration.

"This struggle has been very much a family thing and as a Malaysian, it is about fighting for what is right, for the freedom of human rights," she said.

Despite it being a long shot, Nuha said the family as well as lawyers and the opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat intended to exhaust all avenues in order to free Anwar through the movement.

"The aim of 'March to Freedom' is to free papa. But it is also to free the judiciary system and other institutions under the current regime, that has been unfair," she added.

"We have all grown up, we are all aware. People want change. We can see it in their eyes, their sweat."

Nuha, whose older sister is Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar, has also been tipped to run for the Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat to replace her father, something that she is reluctant to discuss.

"As for Permatang Pauh, nothing has been discussed. So the issue of my aspirations in politics does not arise as it is still a bit premature.

"Right now, my focus is on 'March to Freedom'. This is everything to me. Our father has been taken away from us yet again and this is something that we very much want to strive for," she said.

Full-time motherNurul Nuha Anwar seen here with her two sons Yahya (left), 3, and Sulaimaan, 1, is also a freelance graphic designer. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Najjua Zulkefli, February 21, 2015.

She confessed that she was still struggling to balance her work in the movement to free her father with her time with her two sons, aged three and one.

"I am a full-time mother but I freelance as a graphic artist at night after my children go to bed. My husband (a pilot) travels a lot on work.

"And I make sure that my undivided attention is for the kids, without the phone or other gadgets because what I learnt from when my father was first jailed in 1999, was that you can never get the time back.

"I am still learning, though... how to balance my work in 'March to Freedom' and being a mother," Nuha said, adding that her husband of four years has been very supportive of her decision.

On Tuesday, Nuha gave her maiden speech in Penang to some 500 people and received a standing ovation when she arrived at the Han Chiang school hall, where a tribute was held for her father.

"I felt so touched. But I don’t think the standing ovation was for me. It was for my father. You can see that people were there to support the family. They were pouring out their love and support for him," said Nuha, adding that she had inherited her father's perseverance and principles.

Nuha, a graduate in arts and visual technology from George Mason University, in the United States, also weighed in on the attacks by Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, the prosecutor in her father's case who has embarked on an Umno-sponsored roadshow to explain the court judgment to the public.

"He's giving these talks in forums not based on facts and he is making up things that are not even from the case. Whatever it is, it has only made us stronger. He can say whatever he wants but he can't silence the people.”

The roadshow, launched by Umno Youth, was to debunk speculations that Anwar's incarceration was a political conspiracy against Anwar, said its chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

However, Shafee has come under severe criticism for his tirade against Anwar, with many saying that such actions were unbecoming of a senior lawyer and that by doing so, he had acted beyond his scope as prosecutor representing the Attorney-General's Chambers in the sodomy appeal.

Defacto law minister Nancy Shukri noted that the roadshow would make Putrajaya "look bad" and suggested that Shafee, instead, have a public debate with one of his biggest critics, the Bar Council, to end his tirade against Anwar.
Nurul Nuha Anwar (centre) is joined by her younger sisters Nurul Hana (left) and Nurul Iman during the interview. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Najjua Zulkefli, February 21, 2015.

- TMI