Malaysian blogger charged with defaming deputy PM's wife

Agence France-Presse - 7/17/2008 10:28 AM GMT

A prominent Malaysian blogger was charged with defamation Thursday over a sworn statement in which he linked the deputy prime minister's wife to a sensational murder.

Abdul Razak Baginda, a close friend of Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, has been charged with abetting the murder of 28-year-old Mongolian woman Altantuya Shaariibuu, whose body was blown up with explosives.

Two police officers from an elite force, whose duties included guarding the prime minister and Najib, were also charged with the killing.

Police on Thursday charged Raja Petra Kamaruddin, founder and editor of the Malaysia Today website, after he lodged a statement in court last month linking Najib's wife Rosmah Mansor with the murder.

"He will be facing three charges for criminal defamation on the two colonels and Rosmah, the deputy prime minister's wife," the blogger's wife Marina Lee told reporters.

The military personnel were mentioned in Raja Petra's statement, but are not facing any charges.

Najib -- who is heir apparent to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi -- has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying he had never even met the murdered woman, and that it was an attempt to tarnish his political career.

Raja Petra, 57, arrived at police headquarters to face the charges, in a defiant mood and accompanied by supporters and fellow bloggers.

"I am ready to face my day in court," he told reporters.

Raja Petra already faces a sedition charge after an article he wrote in May which also implicated Najib and his wife in the case.

The trial on that charge will begin on October 6. If convicted, he faces three years in jail.