<br /> <p>Thousands of people flocked to a political rally in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, on Wednesday evening, May 16, to hear the first public speech of Malaysian politician Anwar Ibrahim since his release</a> from jail hours earlier.</p><p>“From the prison to the palace,” Anwar told the 5,000-strong crowd</a>, referring to his audience with the Malaysian king who pardon him.</p><p>The mood was jubilant. The crowd blew vuvuzela horns, banged the drums, waved the blue-white-red flags of Anwar’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and chanted “Reformasi” — a battle cry of the pro-democracy leader who first went to jail 20 years ago.</p><p>Heavy rains made Padang Timur, venue of the political rally, muddy and soggy, but it didn’t deter supporters from gathering</a> at the square from late afternoon, hours before Anwar’s scheduled appearance.</p><p>Anwar’s release from his second prison stint – for a sodomy conviction that he says was trumped up by ousted Prime Minister Najib Razak – came one week after his opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan won the elections, ending Barisan Nasional’s six-decade grip on power. Anwar had served two years of his five year sentence.</p><p>Also on the evening of May 16, police descended</a> on Najib’s residence to conduct a search, which still continued in the next morning. Credit: @Sashi1403 via Storyful</p><br />
