WikiLeaks invites Najib, Anwar televised debate

Whistleblower site wants contentious trio for a live televised debate

KUALA LUMPUR - Whistleblower site WikiLeaks made an invitation to Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to join a discussion on the future of Malaysia with Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and political blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, moderated by WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

A press release published Thursday morning by the WikiLeaks twitter account stated, "In response to the recent controversy over Anwar Ibrahim and Raja Petra and following Prime Minister Najib Razak's comments on the matter, we have formally invited Prime Minister Najib Razak to discuss the future of Malaysia together with Mr. Ibrahim, moderated by Mr. Assange. We now extend our invitation to Mr. Najib to debate Mr. Raja Petra and Mr. Ibrahim together, or in isolation. If accepted, the filmed discussion will be seen by up to 600 million people and will be available online."

Anwar, who heads the opposition Parti Keadilan Rakyat, had originally been invited to a WikiLeaks forum in Kent, England.

He then turned down the invitation after the addition of Raja Petra, whose Malaysia Today website had launched scathing attacks on the Penang-born politician and the opposition coalition of Pakatan Rakyat.

In response to the spat between Anwar and Raja Petra, Prime Minister Najib commented that Anwar's unwillingness to debate Raja Petra was inconsistent with Anwar's stand on practising democracy and openness.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had dared Anwar to 'be man enough' to face Raja Petra, suggesting that Anwar's assertion to have Raja Petra removed from the political global forum had been out of fears that Raja Petra would reveal secrets about the opposition leader.

Anwar accepted the invitation in a public tweet addressed to WikiLeaks. He later told reporters at Parliament today, 'Julian Assange has agreed to host the debate between Najib, RPK and me and I have said yes.'

At time of publication, Najib had not responded to the debate.

HAVE YOUR SAY - Should Najib debate Anwar and Raja Petra in a WikiLeaks discussion hosted by Julian Assange? Let us know what you think in the comments!