Raja Petra refuses bail, stages hunger strike - The Sun

By Charles Ramendran and Maria J.Dass

PETALING JAYA (May 7, 2008): Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, the webmaster of malaysia-today.net who was charged with sedition yesterday for news content in his website has refused bail.

In an act of defiance against the charges, Raja Petra has gone on a hunger strike in the Sungai Buloh prison where he is being held and has refused to meet anyone, including his wife Marina Lee Abdullah.

"He won't listen to anyone of us and I am so worried for his health. Except for a drink of water just before being charged in court on Tuesday, he has not eaten or drank anything since. He has kidney problems and I don't think he can take this hunger strike if he goes on for days like this," said Marina when contacted by theSun today.

She said Raja Petra developed kidney ailments when he went on a five-day hunger strike during his detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in 2000.

"My husband's lawyers and I had tried to post bail early today (yesterday) to free Raja Petra but he had not just refused bail but also declined to see any of them.

"I believe my husband is doing this as he feels he has been unfairly judged and persecuted. He is angry, just as how everyone else is with what has happened and I know he will only stop this strike when they release him. I can only pray for his health for now, I hope everyone will do so too," said Marina.

[More at http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=22096]