Chronology of key events in the Anwar saga

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1, 1998 (AFP) - Here is a chronology of key events leading up to the trial of ousted deputy premier and finance minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday:

JUNE: A book called "Fifty Reasons Why Anwar Cannot Be Prime Minister" is circulated at the ruling UMNO party congress, with allegations including sexual misconduct. An Anwar ally denounces corruption, cronyism and nepotism in the party in a move widely seen as an indirect attack on Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. The premier responds with a list of parties involved in government contracts, including several Anwar associates.

JULY: Anwar obtains a court injunction against the book. The editors of Utusan Malaysian and Berita Harian, both Anwar allies, resign along with a top executive at a private television network, another Anwar ally. Anwar's tennis partner, S. Nallakaruppan, is arrested under the Internal Security Actfor allegedly possessing unlicensed bullets, a capital charge.

AUGUST: The government speeds up interest rate cuts in a bid to ease pressure on banks and revive stalled construction projects. The central bank governor and his deputy, both Anwar allies, announce their resignation.

SEPTEMBER 1: The central bank annnounces sweeping exchange controls. Mahathir says external convertibility of the ringgit will end in October. Foreigners are prevented from repatriatring the proceeds of share sales for one year.

SEPTEMBER 2: Anwar is dismissed as finance minister and deputy prime minister. The ringgit is fixed at 3.80 to the dollar.

SEPTEMBER 3: Malaysian media run lurid details of police allegations against Anwar ranging from sexual misconduct to posing a threat to national security. 

SEPTEMBER 4: UMNO dismisses Anwar as deputy president of the party and scraps his membership. Mahathir appoints himself finance minister. Anwar moves from his official residence to his suburban home and issues a statement calling for "reformasi," the rallying cry of student protestors in Indonesia.

SEPTEMBER 5: Police say they are investigating Anwar for sedition, abuse of power, interfering with a police investigation and tampering with evidence. 

SEPTEMBER 6: Anwar says his adopted brother, Indonesian-born Sukma Darmawan Sasmitaat Madja, has been arrested.

SEPTEMBER 7: The head of Mahathir's economic planning unit is named as the new central bank governor. Mahathir appoints a "second" finance minister. Nallakaruppan denies making allegations against Anwar while in police detention.

SEPTEMBER 8: Mahathir says Anwar is "unsuitable" for public office and that he is "convinced" of the charges against him. Anwar counters that the charges are fabricated.

SEPTEMBER 11-12: Thousands of supporters join Anwar at a downtown mosque for Friday prayers. Anwar embarks on a nationwide tour. Tens of thousands of supporters gather to hear Anwar speak in his home town of Bukit Mertajam in the northern state of Penang and the town of Pkok Sena in neighbouring Kedah.

SEPTEMBER 14: Police arrest Munawar Ahmad Anees, a Pakistani biologist, Islamic scholar and occasional speechwriter for Anwar, as Anwar continues his political roadshow.

SEPTEMBER 18: For the first time since his dismissal, Anwar publicly calls on Mahathir to step down during a rally in eastern Terrenganu state.

SEPTEMBER 19: Anwar's adopted brother Sukma and former speech writer Munawar are sentenced to six months' jail each for allowing Anwar to sodomise them. Anwar calls Mahathir a "dictator who conducts a Gestapo-style campaign."

SEPTEMBER 20: Police detain Anwar after he leads an anti-government rally of tens of thousands of people in a central Kuala Lumpur square during a visit by Britain's Queen Elizabeth II. 

SEPTEMBER 21: Clashes between Anwar's supporters and the police erupt on Kuala Lumpur streets for the second day, as officials announce Anwar's detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) which allows for indefinite detention without trial.

SEPTEMBER 22: Anwar's wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, who has taken over leadership of the reform movement, is ordered by police not to speak at public rallies. 

SEPTEMBER 23: Police impose a nationwide ban on all meetings in support of Anwar's reform movement. Azizah is barred from undertaking political activities in her house.

SEPTEMBER 24: The national police chief warns of severe action against demonstrations in support of Anwar. Anwar accuses Mahathir of beeing "hungry for power and money" in a video message.

SEPTEMBER 25: The United States voices concern over the detention of Anwar under the ISA. Mahathir says Anwar will be brought to court if there is no rioting by his supporters, as police storm into the national mosque and break up a demonstration by Anwar's supporters after Friday prayers.

SEPTEMBER 27: Thousands attend a meeting at the headquarters of the opposition Parti Islam Se Malaysia (Pas), as opposition parties and action groups form a coalition to campaign for reforms. 

SEPTEMBER 29: Anwar appears in court with a black eye and a bruised arm, charging that police had handcuffed, blindfolded and beaten him on the night of his arrest. He pleads not guilty to nine charges, five of corruption and four of unnatural sex.

SEPTEMBER 30: Anwar is charged with a fifth count of sodomy. The United States, Australia and Amnesty International lead foreign expressions of concern over the alleged beating of Anwar, while Mahathir says his injuries may have been self-inflicted.

OCTOBER 1: Police summon Azizah for the third time, to clarify a statement she made to satellite broadcaster CNBC Asia expressing fear that her husband might be injected with the HIV virus which can lead to AIDS.

OCTOBER 2: A close ally of Anwar, UMNO youth wing chief Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, resigns after nine days in police detention under the ISA.

OCTOBER 3: Philippine President Joseph Estrada calls on Filipinos to support his old friend Anwar. 

OCTOBER 5: The High Court orders a halt to all public comments on Anwar's case, and sets November 2-14 as the preliminary dates for hearings of four of the five corruption charges.

OCTOBER 6: Hundreds gather in central Malaysia for an anti-government rally. UMNO expels 10 members linked to Anwar and sends letters to another 18 demanding reasons why they should not be kicked out.

OCTOBER 7: US Vice-President Al Gore urges Malaysia not to stifle opposition but Mahathir tells the Americans to mind their own business.

OCTOBER 8: Azizah files an application seeking her husband's release from indefinite detention under the ISA.

OCTOBER 9: Police allow Anwar to meet with his family and to hold his first meeting with his lawyers, almost three weeks after his arrest.

OCTOBER 10: The Malaysian Bar Council calls for people detained under the ISA to be released or charged in court and demands that lawyers be allowed to do their jobs without being harassed. 

OCTOBER 13: The High Court sets October 24 to hear the application filed by Anwar's wife to seek his release from police detention under the ISA.

OCTOBER 14: Police release Anwar from detention under the ISA but remand him in custody at a new prison on the corruption and sex charges.

OCTOBER 15: The attorney-general announces that the six remaining charges of corruption and sodomy faced by Anwar will be heard in December and January. Estrada meets Anwar's eldest daughter Nurul Izzah in Manila.

OCTOBER 17: Anwar releases his first statement from jail through his wife to denounce the alleged inhumane treatment of detainees under the ISA. Police clash with protestors after an anti-government rally in support of Anwar and arrest more than 100 people.

OCTOBER 19: Mahathir, in a five-day visit in Japan, insists Malaysia is calm and tells people to distrust US news networks CNN and CNBC.

OCTOBER 20: Mahathir accuses Anwar of trying to bring down the government through violence.

OCTOBER 22: Estrada says he would like to visit Anwar in jail during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November if allowed.

OCTOBER 24: Police clash with Anwar supporters and arrest more than 250 people in a day of scattered violence, including riots at the capital's politically sensitive Moslem community of Kampung Baru.

OCTOBER 25: Opposition and human rights groups urge Mahathir to step down or hold early polls.

OCTOBER 26: Anwar's wife says that violent demonstrations reflect popular anger against Mahathir.

OCTOBER 27: Mahathir dismisses criticism of a police crackdown on protests, as Anwar urges him in a statement issued from prison to step down honorably following the riots. Thousands attend an opposition rally supporting calls for Mahathir's resignation and the scrapping of the ISA.

OCTOBER 28: The High Court rejects Anwar's application to be freed ahead of his trial, dismissing the sacked minister's arguments as "scandalous" and "incredible".

OCTOBER 30: Anwar files an 11th-hour appeal against rejection of bail.

NOVEMBER 2: Anwar goes to court to hear four corruption charges stemming from alleged attempts to cover up sexual misconduct.