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Thursday 1 July 2010

ANWAR : NAJIB : APCO






I am publishing here three items: Heavy reading but if you want to know about this you need to read them and work it out for yourself what is happening. 
Appendix A
APCO press release on the opening of their new office in Kuala Lumpur
on August 10th 2009.  Their first client is the Government of Malaysia. Fees paid or due to to date approximately USD $22 Million (Twenty two million) 

Appendix B
An article by Jackson Diehl from the Washington Post on June 28th
2010 detailing Anwar’s transistion from pro-American democrat to anti-Israeli zealot. 

Appendix C
A letter dated 28th June 2010 written by the President and the Executive Vice President of B'nai B'rith which claims itself to be  The International  Global Voice of
the Jewish Community, to get Anwar declared an enemy of the Jewish State - and ask that the US officials suspend their ties with Anwar.

Let us be clear on one thing. The issue here is whether having APCO  assist the Malaysian Government in strengthening the government’s online and other strategic communication capabilities to speed the delivery of accurate information to the media and public does compromises our national security and sovereignity. Whether it does or does not will depend who APCO is. You will have to do your own research and make that decision yourself. But I can think for myself and this is what I think. 
The Barisan Nasional Government lies, cheats and deceives it own people. So if APCO is part of this charade then APCO's credentials are suspect. And looking at what APCO has done in the past, they know that they are involved in speeding the delivery of these lies, untruths and deceits of the Barisan Nasional government to its own people. That does not say much for the integrity of APCO.  
From the three articles/letter published this is obvious:
Najib’s BN Government is paying USD$22 Million (twenty two million American Dollars) equivalent to RM$71.67 million (seventy one point six seven million) to APCO for services rendered. Anyway you look at it - it is a hell of a lot of OUR money!
From the letter written by B’nai’ B’rith International they have asked that the US authorities suspend their ties with Anwar – perceiving him to be an enemy of the Jewish state. You can make your own conclusion on this.


Appendix A
APCO WORLDWIDE OPENS IN MALAYSIA
FIRM TO ASSIST NEW MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT IN STRENGTHENING COMMUNICATION
Hong Kong (August 10, 2009) – APCO Worldwide, continuing to broaden its activities in Asia, is opening a new office in Kuala Lumpur, Margery Kraus, president and chief executive officer, announced today. Among the office’s first clients is the Government of Malaysia under the government of Prime Minister Najib Razak.
“Malaysia continues to demonstrate that it is a major player in Asia, one of the great manufacturing nations for electronics and a sophisticated participant in global markets across many sectors,” said Kraus. “APCO’s ability to leverage strategic communication capabilities across borders mirrors the kind of leverage Malaysia has achieved in its approach to business and trade, making this a natural location for our expansion.”
One of the first clients of APCO’s new office will be the Malaysian government, which is retaining APCO to assist in evaluating its capabilities to communicate through new media. APCO will also assist the Malaysian government’s new leadership by sharing recent developments in strategic communication undertaken by governments in Europe, North America and Africa. Separately, APCO will be providing support in Washington, D.C., to Malaysia’s ambassador to the United States.
“As Malaysia moves forward, the government wants to ensure that it is able to provide information to the public quickly and transparently, making use of all relevant new technologies,” said Kraus. “Our team in Kuala Lumpur will include seasoned professionals from many countries, including Malaysia, who are on the cutting edge of new media. They will work to assist in strengthening the government’s online and other strategic communication capabilities to speed the delivery of accurate information to the media and public.”
Paul Stadlen, previously based in APCO’s London office, will serve as managing director of APCO in Malaysia. An award-winning specialist in media relations and international reputation management, Stadlen’s clients include business leaders at blue-chip multinationals from various sectors. Clients have also included government leaders in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. A former journalist, Stadlen previously worked for the BBC and has written for The Times of London and Prospect magazine.
“This is a time of opportunities for Malaysia,” said Stadlen. “APCO is delighted to share media expertise and strategic communication services with the Malaysian government and other clients in Malaysia. We are excited about Malaysia’s future and our ability to participate in it.”
ABOUT APCO WORLDWIDE
Founded in 1984, APCO Worldwide is an award-winning, independently owned global communication consultancy with offices in major cities throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., APCO clients include corporations and governments; industry associations and nonprofit organizations; and seven of the top 10 companies on Fortune’s Global 500. APCO offers services related to business and finance; media, public opinion and society; and government and public policy. The firm is a majority women-owned business. For more information, please visit www.apcoworldwide.com.
###
Contacts:
Elizabeth Wolf
+1.202.778.1470 
ewolf@apcoworldwide.com


  

 Appendix B
   
Monday, June 28, 2010

Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of Malaysia's political opposition, has become known over the past decade as one of the foremost advocates of liberal democracy in Muslim countries. His many friends in Washington include prominent members of the neoconservative movement -- such as Paul Wolfowitz, the former World Bank president and U.S. ambassador to Indonesia -- as well as such Democratic grandees as Al Gore.
Lately, Anwar has been getting attention for something else: strident rhetoric about Israel and alleged "Zionist influence" in Malaysia. He recently joined a demonstration outside the U.S. embassy in Kuala Lumpur where an Israeli flag was burned. He's made dark insinuations about the "Jewish-controlled" Washington public relations firm Apco Worldwide, which is working for Malaysia's quasi-authoritarian government.
Therein lies a story of the Obama era -- about a beleaguered democrat fighting for political and personal survival with little help from Washington; about the growing global climate of hostility toward Israel; and about the increasing willingness of U.S. friends in places such as Turkey and Malaysia to exploit it.
First, a little about Anwar: While serving as deputy prime minister under Malaysian strongman Mahathir Mohamad in the 1990s, he began pushing for reforms -- only to be arrested, tried and imprisoned on trumped-up charges of homosexual sodomy. Freed after six years, he built a multiethnic democratic opposition movement that shocked the ruling party with its gains in recent elections. It now appears to have a chance at winning the next parliamentary campaign, which would allow Malaysia to join Indonesia and Turkey as full-fledged majority-Muslim democracies.
Not surprisingly, Anwar is being prosecuted again. Once again the charge is consensual sodomy, which to Malaysia's discredit remains a crime punishable by whipping and a prison sentence of up to 20 years. Anwar, who is 63 and married with children, denies the charge, and the evidence once again is highly suspect. His 25-year-old accuser has confessed to meeting Prime Minister Najib Razak and talking by phone with the national police chief in the days before the alleged sexual encounter.
Nevertheless the trial is not going well. If it ends in another conviction, Anwar's political career and his opposition coalition could be destroyed, and his life could be at risk: His health is not great. Yet the opposition leader is not getting the kind of support from the United States as during his first prosecution, when then-Vice President Gore spoke up for him. Obama said nothing in public about Anwar when he granted Najib a prized bilateral meeting in Washington in April.
After a "senior officials dialogue" between the two governments this month, the State Department conceded that the ongoing trial again had not been raised, "because this issue was recently discussed at length." When it comes to human rights, the Obama administration apparently does not wish to be repetitive.
Anwar meanwhile found his own way to fight back. Hammered for years by government propaganda describing him as an Israeli agent and a Wolfowitz-loving American lackey, he tried to turn the tables, alleging that Apco was manipulating the government to support Israeli and U.S. interests. He also said that Israeli agents had infiltrated Malaysia's security forces and were "directly involved in the running of the government."
Najib describes Israel as "world gangsters." But he quickly turned Anwar's words against him; Apco has been peddling the anti-Israel statements around Washington.
Anwar is like Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whom he regards as a friend and fellow traveler. Both know better than to indulge in such stuff. Both have recently begun to do it anyway -- after a year in which the Obama administration has frequently displayed irritation with Israel. "If you say we are growing impatient with Israel, that is true," Anwar told me. "If you say I am not too guarded or careful in what I say sometimes, that is also true."
Anwar, who was in Washington for a couple of days last week, spent a lot of time offering explanations to old friends, not to mention House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman and a Jewish leader or two. He said he regretted using terms such as "Zionist aggression," which are common coin for demagogues like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. "Why do I need to use it if it causes so much misunderstanding?" he said. "I need to be more careful."
Many of the Malaysian's friends are inclined to give him a break. "What Anwar did was wrong, but considering that he's literally fighting for his life -- physically as well as politically -- against a government that attacks him as being 'a puppet of the Jews,' one should cut him some slack," Wolfowitz told me.
But Anwar's story can also be read as a warning. His transition from pro-American democrat to anti-Israeli zealot is sobering -- and it is on the verge of becoming a trend





Appendix C



   
May 25, 2010
The Honorable John F. Kerry, Chairman
The Honorable Richard G. Lugar, Ranking Member
Committee on Foreign Relations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Kerry and Senator Lugar:
On behalf of B’nai B’rith International’s more than 200,000 members and supporters, we write to express our deep concern about the flagrantly anti-Semitic pronouncements of Malaysia’s opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim.
Ibrahim, who spent several years living in Washington, D.C. cultivating a pro-Western image, has nonetheless used his position in the Malaysian parliament as a platform for spreading anti-Semitic propaganda. His frequent criticisms of the government of Prime Minister Najib Razak are infused with anti-Jewish and anti-Israel slanders, such as his April 30 assertion that Israeli spies are “directly involved in the running of the government.” On another occasion he alleged the presence of “Israeli intelligence personnel in the Police IT unit.”
Ibrahim also has said in parliament that the “Jewish-controlled” public relations firm hired by the Prime Minister was attempting to manipulate Malaysia to support U.S. policies. In the run-up to Malaysia’s 2008 elections, he said in an interview with IslamOnline, “I have evidence proving that the government is backing the Jewish lobby in the U.S. and some parties inside Israel.”
In light of the role that Ibrahim has played in the resurgence of anti-Semitic polemics in Malaysian politics, we ask that U.S. officials suspend their ties with Anwar Ibrahim. A purveyor of anti-Jewish hatred such as Ibrahim should not enjoy the measure of legitimacy that a positive relationship with the United States would confer upon him.
Thank you for your attention and cooperation. We look forward to remaining in communication with you about this matter in the near future.
Respectfully,


Dennis W. Glick
Daniel S. Mariaschin
President
Executive Vice President

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