William Bourdon, the French civil rights lawyer, who was deportedfrom Kuala Lumpur last week, did not take 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 on 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 hadjustified 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, Ahmad Zahid had pointed out on Sunday that if the French lawyer wanted to pursue his case, he should do it in France, not Malaysia.
Zahid had insisted that the acquisition of the submarines was transparent and that he was willing to testify in court.
He 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 respects.
He denied issuing any statements criticising, either directly or indirectly, any member of the Malaysian government while he was in Penang last Thursday attending the NGO'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 proceeding, 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 hide the fact why I was in M'sia'
Bourdon was referring to the RM7.3 billion purchase of two Scorpene class submarines from French defence giant DCNS in 2002 by the Malaysian government.
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, and the major shareholder in this company is Maslinda Makhzan, the wife of Abdul Razak Baginda, who is allegedly a close confidante of Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Abdul Razak was charged for abetting two police officers - former bodyguards of Najib - in the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2006, believed to be a translator in the Scorpene deal, but was found not guilty.
Meanwhile, Bourdon was asked to comment about Ahmad Zahid's offer to testify in open court should the trial kick off in September as expected.
Many questioned the relevance of Ahmad 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 in the French legal system, he cannot decide whether Ahmad 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 any 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 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 on 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 hadjustified 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, Ahmad Zahid had pointed out on Sunday that if the French lawyer wanted to pursue his case, he should do it in France, not Malaysia.
Zahid had insisted that the acquisition of the submarines was transparent and that he was willing to testify in court.
He 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 respects.
He denied issuing any statements criticising, either directly or indirectly, any member of the Malaysian government while he was in Penang last Thursday attending the NGO'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 proceeding, 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 hide the fact why I was in M'sia'
Bourdon was referring to the RM7.3 billion purchase of two Scorpene class submarines from French defence giant DCNS in 2002 by the Malaysian government.
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, and the major shareholder in this company is Maslinda Makhzan, the wife of Abdul Razak Baginda, who is allegedly a close confidante of Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Abdul Razak was charged for abetting two police officers - former bodyguards of Najib - in the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2006, believed to be a translator in the Scorpene deal, but was found not guilty.
Meanwhile, Bourdon was asked to comment about Ahmad Zahid's offer to testify in open court should the trial kick off in September as expected.
Many questioned the relevance of Ahmad 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 in the French legal system, he cannot decide whether Ahmad 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 any 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 Friday night after being held in KLIA for over 12 hours. - Malaysiakini
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