News agency stands by authenticity of iconic Anwar photo

International news agency the Associated Press (AP) has rejected claims that its 1998 photograph of Anwar Ibrahim was doctored.

The iconic image taken outside of the Petaling Jaya court on Sept 30, 1998, by AP photographer Ed Wray, showed the now prime minister with a black eye and raising his hand, with a defiant expression on his face.

"We believe the photo in question to be accurate and not manipulated," AP Global News Manager Fisnik Abrashi told Malaysiakini in an email.

This comes after PAS mouthpiece Harakah Daily reported that the image by the AP was "edited", citing a retired media videographer, who only wants to be known as Hanafiah.

Hanafiah, whose last post before retirement was with Channel News Asia, is Bersatu's Tangga Batu division information chief.

In a video uploaded by Harakah Daily on Twitter, he claimed the photo was captured by him and at the time, Anwar did not raise his hand. As such, it was "buatan" (created).

When contacted, Hanafiah told Malaysiakini that the photograph was captured by the AP, and that he cannot be certain if it was edited.

Malaysiakini has contacted Wray for comment.

Photojournalists who covered the event in 1998 said they witnessed the scene where Anwar raised his hand for about two seconds before entering the police vehicle and being taken away.

However, most photojournalists missed the shot because they were trying to capture the scene from 10m away, using film cameras, while police positioned themselves to block the journalists' view.

AP photographer Vincent Thian, who scanned Wray's negatives on the day, confirmed the iconic image was among those shot by Wray that day.

Thian said he had also captured the same shot but decided to send over Wray's photograph to the AP bureau in Bangkok because it was better framed.

The AP photograph was used in various international media and became an iconic image of the Reformasi era.

The photograph was recreated for the poster of an Anwar biopic, which hit cinemas earlier this year.

However, it took a different twist when last month, PN leader Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor struck the same pose outside the Selayang Court, where he was charged with sedition.

He said he raised his hand to "fight Anwar Ibrahim", prompting thousands of TikTok users to do the same to show Sanusi and PN support. - Mkini