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Bersih 2 – no “Bodoh Melayu, Babi Cina or India Keling” feeling

by KennyChang
Letter
11.7.11

Let me Introduce myself,I’m a normal Malaysian Citizen 32 years old.

Never Had i have any interest in politics or whatsoever is happening in politics.I never vote before or have any urge to register as a voter.

I only know Dr Mahathir and Samy Vellu [Of course which Malaysian does not know this 2 person?]. My late father and relative did told me Dr Mahathir is a great man this and that and would vote for him anytime he call elections.

I never did really study or learn about him in depth, so i just follow my late fathers,friends and relatives to consider him my idol.So after my all this introduction that i wrote i might just now realised i’m maybe a Pro Umno/Bn unexpectedly. Continue reading “Bersih 2 – no “Bodoh Melayu, Babi Cina or India Keling” feeling”

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The best of Bersih

By Art Harun
July 11, 2011

JULY 11 — In so far as Bersih is concerned, I am done lecturing on the concept of fundamental liberties and the rights of the people. I am done writing about the true concept of social contract and the duties of the State. Because, really, knock, knock, knock, and there’s nobody home.

So today I am going to do what I have not done in the past, namely, I would post links to the websites which, I think, depict the best of Bersih. In fact, they depict the best of Malaysia, really (it proves that one does not have to engage a super high powered Jewish company and pay them millions to sell a concept such as 1 Malaysia. Bersih proves that when there is a unity of purpose, the people will unite). Continue reading “The best of Bersih”

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Liow blames protesters for ‘ambushing’ Tung Shin

By Patrick Lee
July 11, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today

KUALA LUMPUR: Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai today slammed Bersih protesters for seeking refuge in the Tung Shin Maternity Hospital when the police charged them on Saturday.

He said that the protesters should have stayed away from the Jalan Pudu hospital, instead of “ambushing” it during the rally.

“We need to take care of our hospital. It must be protected. Even demonstrators should not ambush the hospital,” he told reporters at Tung Shin today. Continue reading “Liow blames protesters for ‘ambushing’ Tung Shin”

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Bersih rally and the real 1Malaysia

by Meng Yee
Malaysiakini
Jul 11, 11

Which Malaysia is PM Najib referring to in his catchy phrase 1Malaysia? The Malaysia I see him representing is one of tense tolerance always holding a precarious balance in check. A coalition of three main parties divided along racial lines.

Each takes care of its own community, each fights for the same pie for its community. On all sides of the racial divide in Najib’s 1Malaysia there are routine threats, name-calling and extremists who insist on ketuanan Melayu.

The other side of Malaysia who came out in the tens of thousands this weekend during the Bersih 2.0 rally represented all segments of Malaysian society. Continue reading “Bersih rally and the real 1Malaysia”

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Najib rues Bersih handling, says Kit Siang

by Clara Chooi
The Malaysian Insider
Jul 11, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — Lim Kit Siang said today Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s unannounced visit yesterday to Bersih 2.0’s rally hotspots proved the prime minister was aware that his “mishandling” of the event had plunged him in “deep political trouble”.

The DAP advisor also chided Najib for claiming support from the “silent majority” who stayed home on Saturday, and told the prime minister they had broken their silence by calling for his resignation through Facebook.

A Facebook fan page set up after the rally, called “100,000 People Request Najib Tun Razak Resignation”, reached its 100,000 mark at 3.50am this morning and is still growing steadily.

“This is a most eloquent response to Najib’s call yesterday on the ‘silent majority’ of Malaysians to make their stand in cyberspace on the Bersih 2.0 rally.

“The ‘silent majority’ of Malaysians have indeed spoken out loud and clear, in the most viral phenomenon on Malaysian cyberspace, declaring their denunciation of the Najib crackdown on the 709 Bersih 2.0 rally,” Lim said in a statement today. Continue reading “Najib rues Bersih handling, says Kit Siang”

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Was it worth it?

by Abdul Haleem
Jul 11, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

JULY 11 — It has been 12 days since I have seen my wife, my son (who has just turned three) and my one-month-old daughter, sweet little Lana girl. If I don’t go down to see them this weekend, I will not see them for at least another week.

Three days ago my wife and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary, whilst we were apart. I had a choice to go back to Penang and be with them for the weekend, but instead, I chose to go down to Kuala Lumpur to support Bersih 2.0.

I arrived in KLIA at about 10.30am. The airport looked eerily deserted. As I travelled light, I literally ran to get an ERL ticket and jumped onto the train. As my excitement grew, I looked around to see KL as a ghost town. Even on Hari Raya holidays, you’ll see more cars on the Sungei Besi Highway compared to this particular Saturday.

Walking out from KL Sentral, I was shocked to see a huge presence of FRU units and police. I assumed this was to “manage possible demonstrators who might alight in KL Sentral and walk towards Masjid Negara.” I proceed to my hotel, which was just across from KL Sentral. Continue reading “Was it worth it?”

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PM, IGP still in denial state

By Tarani Palani
July 11, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and the Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar are still in a state of denial. They still deny police brutality during Saturday’s rally despite extensive video evidence of police’s heavy-handed techniques.

Bersih said in a statement that it was “disappointed” by Najib and Ismail’s continuous denial, which “completely flies in the face of extensive video evidence” of the police’s heavy-handed techniques. Continue reading “PM, IGP still in denial state”

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Najib the biggest loser, says Kit Siang

By FMT Staff
July 11, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: There are many casualties in the Bersih 2.0 rally – police, mainstream media and the Election Commission (EC) – but the biggest loser is Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, says DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang.

He said that the rally on Saturday saw the death of Najib’s 1Malaysia concept but the birth of a true Bersih 1Malaysia.

“(On that day), Malaysians of all races, religions, gender and age walked tall despite police threats, teargas, water cannons and sustained media demonisation to reaffirm their faith in a clean Malaysia…,” he said in his blog posting today. Continue reading “Najib the biggest loser, says Kit Siang”

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Good Things that Came Out of Bersih 2.0 Rally

By Kee Thuan Chye
11 July 2011

WHAT the Bersih 2.0 rally of July 9 has shown is that Malaysians of all races are willing to risk arrest to speak up for their rights; that Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali is nothing but hot air and the media should no longer give him any attention; that Umno Youth is just a directionless bunch of brats; and, above all, that the Government is the biggest loser for mishandling the entire issue.

As it was, the rally turned out to be peaceful, as the organisers had pledged it would be. The only acts of violence were those committed by the police, when they attacked the protestors with tear gas and water cannons although the latter did not provoke them. In retrospect, if the Government had allowed the rally to go on without fuss from the start – and it must be said that Bersih 2.0 (Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections) asked modestly for only two hours, from 2pm to 4pm – it would have just gone on without fuss, and everything would have been all right. Continue reading “Good Things that Came Out of Bersih 2.0 Rally”

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Liow Tiong Lai: “Tung Shin Hospital ‘not hit’ in rally crackdown”

By Lee Way Loon
Jul 11, 11 | MalaysiaKini

"... don't cite whatever pictures or videos again..."
Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai has claimed that the police did not shoot tear gas and water cannon into the Tung Shin Hospital compound, in the crackdown on last Saturday’s Bersih 2.0 rally.

He said he has confirmed with the hospital authorities that the claims circulating on the Internet are not true.

“The police shot the tear gas over the main road. Maybe the smoke was blown by the wind in this direction – that, we don’t know, but they were not aiming at the hospital,” he told reporters after meeting board members of the hospital this afternoon. Continue reading “Liow Tiong Lai: “Tung Shin Hospital ‘not hit’ in rally crackdown””

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Malaysians Passed The Test, Brilliantly!

By M. Bakri Musa

A remarkable thing happened this past weekend. To many, the event on Saturday was nothing more than a massive public demonstration that capped a long brewing confrontation between those advocating “fair and free elections” and those who deemed that our elections are already so.

As with any fight, the drama was played out long before the event, and by the time the actual battle took place, the participants had long forgotten the original issue. Instead, now the preoccupation is who blinked first, who outsmarted whom, and most of all, who lost and who won. These then become the new overriding divisive issues, eclipsing the original one. Continue reading “Malaysians Passed The Test, Brilliantly!”

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The Proudest Day for Malaysians

By Thomas Lee Seng Hock
9th July 2011

Comment MCA president Chua Soi Lek has again put himself and his party in a very awkward, embarrassing and contradicting poistion by endorsing the Umno Youth street demonstration while condemning the march by concerned citizens initiated and led by Bersih leaders.

According to a report in The Star, when asked about the Umno Youth demonstration, Chua said that its chief Khairy Jamaluddin had a reason to do it as the youth movement wanted to “defend the current institutions and make known that the electoral roll was not tainted”. Continue reading “The Proudest Day for Malaysians”

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Najib’s post-709 KL walkabout reminds you of what?

There are many casualties in the 709 Bersih 2.0 rally on Saturday especially the police, the mainstream media and the election commission but the biggest loser of all is undoubtedly the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

709 saw the death of Najib’s 1Malaysia but the birth of a true Bersih 1Malaysia where Malaysians of all races, religions, gender and age walked tall despite police threats, teargas, water cannons and sustained media demonisation to reaffirm their faith in a Clean Malaysia where there are free and fair elections, a clean political system and incorrupt national governance. Continue reading “Najib’s post-709 KL walkabout reminds you of what?”

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Resign, netizens tell Najib

Malaysiakini
Jul 11, 11

Even as thousands descended on Kuala Lumpur for the Bersih 2.0 rally on Saturday, netizens held their own protest via Facebook to demand the prime minister’s resignation.

The page, ‘100,000 People Request Najib Tun Razak Resignation’, quickly hit its six-figure target, garnering a staggering 109,484 ‘likes’ from Facebook users within 48 hours.

A large part of the virtual congregation is made up of Bersih 2.0 supporters, many of whom have used the official Bersih 2.0 profile badge. Continue reading “Resign, netizens tell Najib”

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I am proud to be Malaysian

By May Chee Chook Ying
July 11, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

JULY 11 — On Friday, after checking into the Swiss Garden Hotel at around 5pm, I sent an SMS to my good friend Kim which said: “Just checked into the Swiss Garden Hotel for my second honeymoon. Going for a picnic tomorrow at 2pm at Stadium Merdeka. Please pray for all of us gathered there, that everything will be peaceful.”

When asked whether he wanted a room with single beds or one with a king-size bed, we were requested to check into the Residence after my husband asked for the latter. Later, we took a stroll down Bukit Bintang Road and I was rather surprised at how things have changed. Continue reading “I am proud to be Malaysian”

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Malaysians Resort To Facebook To Voice Out Their Opinions

By Dinesh Karthikesu
July 10, 2011

Malaysia, according to a recent report by greyreview, is home to more than 11 million Facebook users, and is Asia’s No. 4 Facebook nation behind Indonesia, India and the Philippines respectively. Malaysians however, aren’t just using this ingenious creation to keep in touch with their friends, and to have some social fun. They’ve actually resorted to Facebook to voice out their opinions, and to make themselves heard, and to be perfectly honest with you, they are doing a pretty good job at it.

In the wake of the recent Bersih 2.0 rally that took place in Malaysia, as well as several other countries by concerned Malaysians, several Facebook pages have been set-up by angry, and dissatisfied Malaysians.

A Facebook page was registered under the title, “100,000 People Request Najib Tun Razak’s Resignation“, and moments later, people started flooding the page. The page went viral, and has 52,802 ‘likes’ as I type this. The best part of it? Well, the page has been up for less than a day! Instead of blatantly insulting their leader, who is under immense pressure right now, they figured that being united would be the best way to achieve their goal of having a good government. Some use the page as a medium to share shocking facts, and revelations related to the country’s government. Continue reading “Malaysians Resort To Facebook To Voice Out Their Opinions”

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An inconvenient focus

By Jema Khan
July 11, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

JULY 11 — The Bersih 2.0 rally on Saturday where tens of thousands of Malaysians demonstrated appeared to be more spontaneous than precision planned. Although we all knew that July 9th was the day for the rally, there was hope that it would be held in a stadium and that any disruptions would be minimised. It appears that even the intercession of the King was not enough for the police to provide a proper venue for Bersih to air their grouses.

The police warned us that they were in effect “locking down” Kuala Lumpur and that anyone suspected of being involved with Bersih would be arrested. As it happened, they arrested a total of more than 1,600 Malaysians. Continue reading “An inconvenient focus”