Jailed former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim has declined the offer to undergo a spinal disc replacement surgery in the hands of local experts, said his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail today.

Anwar, who is suffering from a prolapsed disc and requires a wheelchair to move around, was determined to wait until his application to undergo the treatment of his choice received approval from the government.

The ex-deputy premier had requested permission to have an endoscopic surgery in Germany by specialist Dr Thomas Hoogland but this was turned down.

Wan Azizah said that following a discussion with family members and after consulting several specialists, it was decided that a surgery here could prove to be risky.

Furthermore, she claimed, that the procedure offered was still in the experimental stages.

"We feel the disc replacement surgery is unsuitable for Anwar's condition as it involves a major invasive surgery where the affected disc would be removed and replaced with a titanium implant.

"Also, the procedure has to be performed under general anesthesia which means he would be unconscious throughout the surgery and would be unaware if his nerves are affected unlike the endoscopic surgery," she said when contacted.

According to her, the endoscopic surgery entailed minimal surgical procedure and can be performed under local anesthesia.

Extreme pain

Wan Azizah, who is also Keadilan president, explained that it was not an easy decision as her husband was in extreme pain and faced the threat of developing other health complications due to the large amount of painkillers he consumes.

"We are aware of the risk we are taking. We considered the side effects of the painkillers he has to take to overcome the pain. But we feel that the effect will not be as bad as the outcome if the spinal disc replacement surgery foils," she added.

Asked how their six children reacted to the decision, she said although they are anxious about their father's health, they trusted their parents' judgement.

Wan Azizah said she wrote a letter to Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) director Dr Ramlee Rahmat today to inform him about the decision and express gratitude for the offer.

During Anwar's medical check-up on Nov 13, a panel of orthopaedic specialists, headed by Dr Selva Kumar from Universiti Putra Malaysia, offered to perform the surgery in HKL.

International campaign

Meanwhile, Wan Azizah said she and her family would continue to push the government to allow Anwar to have the endoscopic surgery in Germany.

On the development of the international campaign to allow Anwar to receive treatment abroad, she said her recent trip to Bangkok saw her husband's friends showing positive support for the campaign.

"They had not been able to officially support our efforts (in order) to avoid diplomatic strains but they seem very willing to express their support as friends of Anwar," she added.

In a related development, the Geneva Inter-Parliamentary Union on Sept 27 had called upon the Malaysian parliament to give full support to the Malaysian Human Rights Commission's (Suhakam) recommendation that Anwar be allowed to seek treatment overseas.

Although the Prison Act stipulated that prisoners were not entitled to medical treatment abroad, the union felt that Suhakam's recommendation carried some weight and should not be dismissed by the authorities.

The union also expressed regret over the Federal Court's decision to dismiss Anwar's appeal against his conviction for abuse of power, saying that it believed his prosecution and sentencing was politically motivated.

The ex-deputy premier who is serving a 15-year jail term for abuse of power and sodomy also claimed to have fallen prey to a political conspiracy, a charge which the government has denied.

Anwar, who has been suffering from a back injury since a horse riding accident several years ago, alleged that his condition worsened when he was assaulted in custody by former inspector-general of police Abdul Rahim Noor in1998.

Abdul Rahim was jailed two months for the assault after he had pleaded guilty.