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Malaysian bar chief asks for explanation on Siti Aisyah release

Malaysia’s top council of lawyers asked the attorney-general to explain the release of an Indonesian suspect in the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half-brother, but not a second suspect who is Vietnamese.

Yudith Ho (Bloomberg)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Mon, March 18, 2019 Published on Mar. 18, 2019 Published on 2019-03-18T10:46:51+07:00

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Malaysian bar chief asks for explanation on Siti Aisyah release  Safe at home: President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo (left) greets Siti Aisyah, who was just freed from a charge of murdering Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, during their meeting at the State Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday. (The Jakarta Post/Seto Wardhana )

Malaysia’s top council of lawyers asked the attorney-general to explain the release of an Indonesian suspect in the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half-brother, but not a second suspect who is Vietnamese.

Attorney-General Tommy Thomas should explain the inconsistency, especially since the case has attracted global attention, the newly elected head of the Malaysian Bar Council, Abdul Fareed Abdul Gafoor, said in a statement. Thomas’s office didn’t answer a phone call seeking comment Sunday outside business hours.

After Kim Jong Nam was killed at the Kuala Lumpur airport in 2017, Siti Aisyah, an Indonesian, and Doan Thi Huong, a Vietnamese, were charged with murder and accused of smearing VX nerve agent onto Kim’s face, Malaysian authorities said at the time. Charges against Siti have been withdrawn, Abdul Fareed said, while Huong remains in custody, facing trial in the killing.

“There are a lot of questions on why one person is acquitted and the charges against her withdrawn while the other person remains charged,” Abdul Fareed said after the council’s annual general meeting on Saturday.

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo personally greeted Siti when she returned home after being acquitted of charges, a Twitter post by the president dated March 12 shows.

Abdul Fareed was elected to lead the bar council together with secretary Salim Bashir Bhaskaran, who is acting as a lawyer for Huong.

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