KUALA LUMPUR (April 27, 2012): The Police have
obtained a court order to bar the organisers of
Bersih 3.0 and members
of the public from entering
Dataran Merdeka beginning April 28 until May
1.
Kuala Lumpur Police Chief Datuk Mohmad Salleh said that the court
order obtained from the Kuala Lumpur Magistrate Court last night under
Section 98 of the
Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) bars the respondent and
the public from gathering or having any activities in Dataran Merdeka
beginning tomorrow (April 28) until May 1.
He added that taking into consideration the safety and peace of the
public in Kuala Lumpur, especially Dataran Merdeka, the police have
obtained the court order.
The areas that are barred is all the land surface bordering Jalan
Sultan Hishamuddin, Jalan Raja and Jalan Kelab except the area the area
occupied by the
Royal Selangor Club.
"Seeing that the
Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has denied the
permission for Bersih 3.0 to have its gathering at Dataran Merdeka,
therefore the respondents and the members of the public are prohibited
from being or taking part in any gathering in these areas beginning
tomorrow until May 1," said Mohmad in a press conference at the Kuala
Lumpur Police Contingent headquarters today.
He explained that anyone who defies the court order will violate
Section 188 of the Penal Code which carries a jail term of six months, a
penalty of up to RM2,000 or both.
Asked if there will be road closures in areas surrounding Dataran
Merdeka or leading to the gathering points, Mohmad said it depends on
the situation.
When probed further on the matter: "We don't need to inform, that depends on us."
Asked if people are allowed to gather at the six planned meeting
points by Bersih, Mohmad said they are allowed to gather but are
prohibited from marching as stipulated under the Peaceful Assembly Act
2011, which was enforced on Monday, adding that those who march or
conduct street protests may face possible arrests.
The six planned meeting points are Masjid Negara, Jalan Sultan,
Jalan
Masjid India, Central Market, Brickfields and
Kuala Lumpur City Centre
(KLCC).
Asked if there will be road closures during the marching of
environmental coalition Himpunan Hijau which will make its way from KLCC
to the Australian High Commission tomorrow, Mohmad said: "It depends on
the situation "
On the Bersih related paraphernalia, including the famous yellow
colored T-shirts, Mohmad said people are entitled to wear what they
want.
At the last year's
Bersih 2.0 rally in July, any paraphernalia
related to the election reform coalition was banned from making its
appearance in public.
DBKL and Bersih 3.0 organisers are deadlocked over Dataran Merdeka as
the venue for the rally, with either side refusing to yield on their
respective stands.
Both the Home Ministry and DBKL have offered alternative venues,
including
Stadium Merdeka, Titiwangsa Stadium and
Bukit Jalil Stadium,
but the election reform group has rejected the suggestion, saying it had
come at too short a notice.
By Hemananthani Sivanandam newsdesk@thesundaily.com
Malaysia Braces for Latest Round of Bersih Protests
By James Hookway and Celine Fernandez
Today is Bersih day in Malaysia. It’s an increasingly regular
phenomenon where prodemocracy activists gather to push for more
transparency in elections and complicating life for Prime Minister
Najib
Razak, who previously has found it difficult to keep the country’s riot
police under control.
Last year, police broke up a similar rally with tear gas and water
cannons, and briefly detained around 1,600 members of the Bersih group,
whose name means ‘clean’ in Malay. That earned Mr. Najib’s government
international condemnation, and prompted him to move forward on a series
of political reforms, including ending Malaysia’s feared Internal
Security Act, which allows for indefinite, warrantless detention.
Despite the changes, Malaysia’s authorities are still leery of
letting protesters do anything they like. Analysts say that Malaysia,
one of Southeast Asia’s powerhouse economies and a major global exporter
of computer parts, energy and palm oil is still a conservative place
where many voters and political power-brokers are fearful of large
street protests despite the rapid growth of Internet penetration and a
proliferation of independent news websites which often are critical of
the government.
For instance, the organizers for today’s rally want to muster at
Merdeka, or Independence, Square, the swath of land in downtown Kuala
Lumpur where Malaysia first hoisted its national flag after securing
independence from Britain in 1957. They are demanding that the country’s
electoral rolls are cleaned up to prevent fraudulent voting and that
alleged biases within the country’s election agency are removed.
In
addition, they want international observers to monitor the polls –
which must be called by next March – and also ensure that all political
parties get similar access to government-controlled broadcasters and
newspapers, who dominate the media landscape in Malaysia. The protests
also want to enable Malaysians living overseas to be able to cast
ballots.
Authorities, though, don’t consider Merdeka Square an appropriate
venue, and have offered to provide nearby stadiums for the protesters.
Bersih leaders say the offer came too late.
Now, Merdeka Square is cordoned off with barricades and razor wires,
and the Bersih protesters intend to mass outside the area instead – a
move which could lead to another confrontation with police and further
embarrass Mr. Najib who has been trying to make a name for himself as
one of Asia’s quieter, but more effective, reformers. Commuter trains
leading from Kuala Lumpur’s suburbs to the center of the city meanwhile
are carrying large numbers of protesters wearing Bersih’s distinctive
yellow t-shirts.
“It is a bit déjà vu, isn’t it?” Ambiga Sreenevasan, one of the
Bersih group’s co-founders, said Friday. “To be fair, it is not the same
(as last year). There is a recognition that we have the right to
assemble. I think no one has disputed that. There is a recognition that
we are not a security threat… I think the only dispute is where (we can
protest).”
That alone seems to be a difficult point for both sides to resolve,
however. Ms. Ambiga said the easiest way for the authorities to handle
the problem is to simply lift the barriers to Merdeka Square – but
that’s likely a move too far for Malaysia’s cautious leaders.
| Malaysia braces for electoral reform rally
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Security tightened in the capital as protesters gather to demand reform of the electoral system.
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Hundreds of police and civilian security
officers have been deployed in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, where
protesters began to gather hours before a scheduled mass rally calling
for electoral reforms.
Supporters of the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections gathered in
an open park in central Kuala Lumpur for Friday's demonstration.
The Kuala Lumpur city government on Friday cordoned off the park after securing a court order to prevent the protest.
Protesters have said they will march to the barricades and demand access but vowed to remain peaceful.
"We will march to the barrier," said Ambiga Sreenivasan, chairwoman of Bersih, an electotal reform pressure group.
Al Jazeera's Harry Fawcett reporting from Kuala Lumpur says: "Already
we are hearing that thousands are near Independence Square, there will
be a significant turnout."
"The police say they will intervene if people defy the order and cross into the square," said our correspondent.
Public backlash
The
mass rally follows one crushed by police last July, when 1,600
people were arrested, and marks a major test for Prime Minister Najib
Razak ahead of widely expected elections.
Last July's rally for clean elections brought tens of thousands to
the streets of the capital, prompting a police crackdown with tear gas
and water cannon.
A resulting backlash prompted Najib to set up a parliamentary panel
whose eventual report suggested a range of changes to the electoral
system.
But Bersih and the opposition are demanding a complete overhaul of a
voter roll considered fraudulent and reform of an Election Commission
they say is biased in favour of the ruling coalition.
The rally is a direct challenge to Najib, who since last year's
crackdown, has launched a campaign to repeal authoritarian laws in a bid
to create what he called "the greatest democracy".
His ruling coalition has governed Malaysia for more than five decades
but made a dismal showing against the opposition in 2008, and Najib is
under pressure to improve on that.
Elections are not due until next year but speculation is rife that Najib could call them as early as June.
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Source:
Al Jazeera and agencies
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