2,000 barge into UM to attend talk by Anwar

KUALA LUMPUR: About 2,000 people attended a talk given by Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim outside Universiti Malaya's (UM) Dewan Tunku Canselor last night after barging through the locked university gate.
Speaking from his four-wheel drive shortly after arriving at 9.30pm, Anwar questioned his alma mater's decision to block him from speaking in the campus.
He praised UM student council president Fahmi Zainol for organising the talk despite the risk of disciplinary action by the university's administration.
Anwar, who was accompanied by his wife, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, and daughter Nurul Izzah, the MP for Lembah Pantai, said he will persevere through his sodomy trial scheduled for today and tomorrow.
Earlier, the university management said it did not receive any application for the talk by Anwar.
Any event that is to be held in the campus should have the prior permission of the management, it said in a statement.
"UM, as the registered owner of the campus, has the ultimate right to all events to be held on the campus grounds," it said.