KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian blogger points out that sodomy laws – which he says Anwar must have been referring to when he called some of Malaysia’s law “archaic” --  do not only exist in Malaysia but in other countries too, notably the United States of America.

Not only that, he believes Anwar would have been tried there as well.

“Anyone, even without reading in between the lines, would have interpreted the archaic law he was referring to was the sodomy law,” Hantu Laut wrote today, referring to remarks Anwar had made in a recent BBC interview.

“Certainly, the BBC was not referring to the ISA,OSA or the Police Act when the question was thrown at him. He was asked a specific question and he gave a specific answer saying that such archaic laws should be reviewed,” he said.

The blogger pointed out that besides Malaysia, other countries have laws against sodomy, including the US, where sodomy is illegal in 22 states.

“Some states with strong Christian values,” he said, “even outlawed consensual homosexuality, open and notorious cohabitation and adultery.”

However, he noted, the “so-called archaic laws” seldom lead to prosecutions, with one major reason being that they are “against the US Federal Constitution”.

“In the US,” he wrote, “the Federal Constitution supersedes state laws. Any consensual sodomy prosecution, by any state, if it goes for appeal to Federal Court, would be overturned by the court.”

The blogger suggested that while the outcome of such a trial in one of those US states would likely be the same as the outcome of the Anwar trial, Anwar would nevertheless have to go through a trial there.

“Let’s say, if Anwar and Saiful were to live in Alabama, Arizona or Arkansas,” he said, “and Saiful lodged a sodomy rape report against Anwar, the scenario would be the same, Anwar would be subjected to the law of the state and would be arraigned for trial.”

“Conspiracy, trump-up, framed or not, there would be a trial,” the blogger continued, “to prove him guilty or innocent, unless the state-attorney found Saiful of questionable character and a liar, like the maid who accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn of rape.”