Bourdon: Gov't demonised Suaram to justify expulsion

William Bourdon, the French civil rights lawyer, who was deported from Kuala Lumpur last week, is not taking lightly the accusation by Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that human rights NGO Suaram had "utilised and victimised" him.

Bourdon said he was merely acting as a lawyer for the NGO and did not see how Suaram had taken advantage of him.

Indeed, his client's right to legal representation had been deprived when immigration officers took him off from his plane at the KL International Airport last Friday morning.

"The only rational explanation I can see to such a statement from the authorities is that they are now trying to ‘demonise' Suaram in order to justify an incomprehensible order to deport me," he told Malaysiakini from Paris.

The Immigration Department had justified its action by saying that the lawyer was deported for violating the conditions of his social visit pass to Malaysia.

In response to Bourdon's deportation, Zahid said on Sunday that if the French lawyer wanted to pursue his case, he should do it in France, not in Malaysia.

He had insisted that the acquisition of the submarines was transparent and that he was willing to testify to this in court.

Zahid also warned certain quarters against running a smear campaign over alleged irregularities in the purchase of the two submarines in 2002.

Bourdon said he had no intention to harm the reputation of the government of Malaysia, a country he deeply respected.

He denied issuing any statement criticising, either directly or indirectly, any member of the Malaysian government while he was in Penang last Thursday attending Suaram's fundraising dinner dubbed 'Ops Scorpene'.

"I came to Malaysia as the lawyer of Suaram in order to meet my client and to participate in a meeting organised by the NGO aimed at raising funds to finance the proceedings (in Paris), mainly to cover costs of translations," he said.

"In my public statements, I was extremely careful with the information shared, stating exclusively information that was already in the public domain," he stressed.

'I never hid the fact why I was in M'sia'

Bourdon was referring to the RM7.3 billion purchase of two Scorpene class submarines in 2002 by the Malaysian government from French defence giant DCNS.

Parliament revealed that the deal netted Perimekar, an obscure consulting company, RM540 million in "commissions".

Payment of commissions to government officials is illegal under French law.

Perimekar is a subsidiary of KS Ombak Laut Sdn Bhd, the major shareholder of which is Maslinda Makhzan, the wife of Abdul Razak Baginda, a close confidante of Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Abdul Razak was charged with abetting two police officers - former bodyguards of Najib - in the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2006, a translator in the Scorpene deal, but was found not guilty.

Bourdon was also asked to comment on Zahid's offer to testify in open court should the trial kick off in September as expected.

Many have questioned the relevance of Zahid's testimony when it was Najib, then deputy prime minister and defence minister, who was in charge of the deal.

Bourdon maintained that as a lawyer under the French legal system, he could not decide whether Zahid could testify in court.

"Only the French police can decide who should be testifying, and who should be held responsible. I stress that the current investigation is secret and that I do not have any access to it at this stage," he added.

On Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein's remark that there was no political agenda in deporting Bourdon and that the lawyer had violated his social visit pass by speaking at the Suaram event, Bourdon reiterated that he has not been clearly told of the reasons for his deportation.

"As a French citizen, I do not need a visa to enter the country," he said.

"I never tried to hide the fact I that I was in Malaysia to meet my client and to participate in meetings as already explained. I do not see any reason for the authorities of Malaysia to prevent me from doing so."

Bourdon, who was accompanied by his fiancee, Lea Forestier (left), was put on a flight back to Paris late last Friday night after being held in KLIA for more than 12 hours.