"Why is the report made by the doctors not released?" she asked at a news conference behind the Sultan Abdul Samad building here which houses the High Court where Anwar's corruption trial is ongoing. 

She said that the Home Minister "should admit about the assault and should also be held responsible." 

Azizah also claimed receiving reports that the police's Special Branch had been threatening activists supporting her newly-formed Pergerakan Keadilan Sosial (Adil), a non-governmental organisation and Anwar's so-called Reformasi movement. 

However, she said: "We value the role played by the majority of the police force in carrying out their duties properly and in accordance with the constitution and laws of the country." 

She said Mohtar's announcement relating to Anwar's injury was disappointing, claiming that the matter had still not been seriously investigated after almost four months. 

Anwar, who was arrested on Sept 20 after leading an illegal assembly and demonstration by his supporters in the federal capital, appeared in court nine days later sporting a black eye which he said was the result of a beating while in police custody. 

Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) president Dr Syed Husin Ali called on Mohtar to resign, saying it was scandalous that after four months of probe the AG was only able to report that the inquiry was still incomplete. 

Syed Husin called for the setting up of an independent body to fully probe the incident, saying that the public would be satisfied with nothing less than full accountability. 

The Gerakan said it was baffled by the AG's statement and felt that it was unacceptable as there was no clear mention of exactly who or which party was responsible for the injuries on Anwar. 

Its deputy secretary-general Dr Tan Kee Kwong said the party hoped that the report would be concluded soon to restore public confidence in the police force. 

"Gerakan is of the opinion that ideally, someone outside the police, for example a retired judge, be responsible for heading the investigation," he said in a statement. 

DAP secretary-general Lim Kit Siang said Mohtar's statement was not only "long overdue but also scandalous when Mohtar said that the ongoing investigation had not identified the person responsible for the injury." 

He called for the setting up of an independent Royal Commission of Inquiry to probe the matter "to command public confidence and credibility."

The International Movement For A Just World (JUST) said the Malaysian public would not be satisfied with just such an admission by the AG. 

In his statement yesterday Mohtar said that he had scrutinised all the statements and examined all the evidence, including the reports of medical experts namely the forensic report by Kuala Lumpur Hospital experts, a medical report by a panel of University Hospital doctors and the opthalmologist report. 

Among others, he said he was of the opinion that the police was fully responsible for the injuries to Anwar while he was in their legal custody and that the investigation carried out so far had not identified the person or persons responsible for such injuries. 

Meanwhile, the Bar Council said it viewed with grave concern the result of the conclusion made in Mohtar's statement that "there are injuries on certain parts of his (Anwar) body which are proved to have been caused by police officers whilst he was in police custody." 

"The Bar Council wishes to state that these matters are of grave concern not only to the legal profession but to the public at large as they vitally concern our system of administration of law and order and the treatment of persons in police custody," its president Dr Cyrus Das said in a statement. 

He said the council noted that the Attorney-General had rightly given the assurance that he would not hesitate to consent to the institution of prosecution against any individual proved to have committed or abetted the commission of such offences. 

The Bar Council urged Mohtar to direct the special investigation team to speedily complete its task and to institute prosecution against those identified to have caused the injuries or abetted the same, Das added. 
-- BERNAMA