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The day when the people rise up: July 9

By Kim Quek
July 07, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

JULY 7 — That’s it! Bersih finally has had enough of the treacherous conduct of a shameless government which has lost all sense of decency!

In a firmly worded statement released late last night, Bersih effectively said “come what may, we will have our rally at the Stadium Merdeka on July 9 at 2 pm!”.

This is Bersih’s final answer to a battery of ridiculous obstructions, warnings and excuses put up by the Najib government to obstruct a Bersih rally in the stadium.

This is despite Bersih having made a major concession to shift the rally from the streets to a stadium under the unprecedented intervention of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, and after Prime Minister Najib Razak’s offer of a suitable stadium for the purpose. Continue reading “The day when the people rise up: July 9”

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Kit Siang accuses Najib of being insincere in Bersih row

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
July 07, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, July 7 — DAP leader Lim Kit Siang accused Datuk Seri Najib Razak today of being insincere and irresponsible for continuing with the Bersih clampdown, despite the group heeding the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s call to hold the July 9 rally in a stadium.

The election watchdog has chosen Stadium Merdeka as the venue for this Saturday’s rally. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar has however told the polls reform group to hold its rally outside of the capital. Continue reading “Kit Siang accuses Najib of being insincere in Bersih row”

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Cops: Restriction order against 91 individuals

by Regina Lee
Malaysiakini
Jul 7, 11

The police have placed a restriction order on 91 individuals, including organisers of the Bersih 2.0, Perkasa and Umno Youth’s Patriot rallies.

The order is to stop any of the 91 from being present at several spots in Kuala Lumpur on July 9.

“This means that anyone (on the list) caught present at these areas will be arrested on sight,” said the city deputy police chief Amar Singh.

Top on the list are the Bersih 2.0 steering committee members, including Ambiga Sreenevasan, Wong Chin Huat and Maria Chin Abdullah.

Also on the list are Pakatan Rakyat leaders, such as opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, PAS spiritual adviser Nik Aziz Nik Mat, his party’s deputy-president Mohamad Sabu, DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang and social activist Hishamuddin Rais. Continue reading “Cops: Restriction order against 91 individuals”

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Najib at risk of becoming the first Kafkaesque Prime Minister in Malaysia who does not mean what he says and does not say what he means

Datuk Seri Najib Razak runs the risk of becoming the first Kafkaesque Prime Minister in Malaysia who does not mean what he says and does not say what he means.

“Kafkaesque” relates to or suggestive of Franz Kafka or his writings and is often applied to bizarre and impersonal administrative situations where the individual feels powerless to understand or control what is happening.

The national sigh of relief evoked by the wise and just intervention of the Yang diPertuan Agong on Monday – that the “gathering storm” in the past week over the Bersih 2.0 rally on July 9 calling for free, fair and clean elections could be dispelled – lasted only 24 hours, for it proved to be both short-lived and premature.

As a direct consequence of the wise and just intervention of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, Bersih organisers called off the July 9 march and instead agreed to hold a rally at any stadium as proposed by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

However, when the Bersih organisers decided on Merdeka Stadium as the venue for the peaceful rally for free, fair and clean elections, all sorts of roadblocks and obstacles were thrown up by the various authorities despite the fact that such a rally at Merdeka Stadium had the blessings of the Yang di Pertuan Agong, viz: Continue reading “Najib at risk of becoming the first Kafkaesque Prime Minister in Malaysia who does not mean what he says and does not say what he means”

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Bersih 2.0 warns of telco, Internet blackout

Malaysiakini | Jul 7, 11

With less than 48 hours to the Bersih 2.0 rally, the movement now claims to have received information that the mobile phone networks and Internet services would be suspended this weekend.

In a statement today, the Bersih 2.0 steering committee said that such a measures to frustrate the rally would make the authorities no different from Middle-Eastern dictators.

“Bersih 2.0 is alarmed by intelligence that there might be a full or partial clampdown on the Internet as we approach this weekend.

“Bersih 2.0 warns the federal government that should access to the mobile phone networks, the Internet, mobile 3G services, specific websites or social media be compromised in any way, then the authorities will look absolutely no different from the Middle-Eastern dictators who have used the same measures with no success whatsoever,” it said.
Continue reading “Bersih 2.0 warns of telco, Internet blackout”

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Najib and gang say the darndest things

By Kee Thuan Chye | July 7, 2011
Free Malaysia Today

The Bersih 2.0 episode has taught us a few important things. About the officials who are supposed to serve us, the rakyat.

First, it has taught us that our prime minister, Najib Tun Razak, is a coward, a passer-of-the-buck, and a man with a slippery tongue.

Although he has now offered the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0) a stadium to hold its rally on July 9, he refuses to say if the government no longer considers it an illegal organisation.

“This is a point whereby we consider them illegal, they don’t consider themselves as illegal but what’s important is public interest, I’m concerned with public interest,” he says. What kind of waffle is that?
Continue reading “Najib and gang say the darndest things”

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Let’s debate: Rahman

Daily Express | 6 July 2011

Kota Kinabalu: Kota Belud MP Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan on Tuesday challenged DAP Advisor Lim Kit Siang to an open debate regarding the proposed Tambatuon Dam.

Expressing disappointment with the Ipoh Timur MP, he said the latter has been continuously instigating the people of Kg Tambatuon with misleading facts about the issue.

“His intention is very clear which is to score political gains at the expense of national interest (food security), long term benefit to the thousands of poor farmers and solution to the drinking water supply and flood mitigation of the people of Kota Belud,” he said in a statement.
Continue reading “Let’s debate: Rahman”

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The Wisdom of the Students

By M. Bakri Musa

In a remarkable display of professorial prowess, University of Malaya Vice-Chancellor Ghauth Jasmon recently engaged his students in a two-hour dialogue on what it would take to make their university great. With humility, pedagogical skills, and great stage presence, he enthralled his audience while imparting an important message. They in turn were not at all shy in telling him the challenges they faced. It was truly a dialogue, not the usual one-way pedantic pronouncements.

Those students had a clear message not only for their Vice-Chancellor but also the country’s leaders and policy makers: Listen to us!

The session was even more remarkable as it was held after lunch, typically siesta time in the tropics. Anyone who has faced a classroom of students at that time of day knows how difficult it is to get their attention. Yet there they were – professor and students – intellectually engaging each other, interspersed with frequent cheers and laughter.
Continue reading “The Wisdom of the Students”

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Putrajaya freezes bus permits for Bersih weekend

By G. Manimaran
Bahasa Malaysia Editor
The Malaysian Insider
July 07, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, July 7 — Putrajaya has frozen temporary bus permits for travel across the peninsula to Kuala Lumpur, in what is seen as an effort to limit the turnout for Saturday’s Bersih rally.

Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar confirmed the directive is effective tomorrow, saying the commission did not want traffic congestion in the capital city.

“We don’t want to add to the congestion in the city, and are taking precautionary measures,” he told The Malaysian Insider this morning.
Continue reading “Putrajaya freezes bus permits for Bersih weekend”

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Najib endorses silat groups despite their threat to Bersih

by Boo Su-Lyn
The Malaysian Insider
July 07, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, July 7 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak has described silat and other self-defence exponents as the third line of defence in the country, including a group that has threatened to wage war against electoral reforms movement Bersih 2.0.

Datuk Seri Najib Razak (centre), Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (left) and Tan Sri Omardin Mauju at PSSLM’s 50th anniversary. — Picture by Boo Su-Lyn
The Pertubuhan Seni Silat Lincah Malaysia (PSSLM) had challenged Bersih for its refusal to abandon a planned rally on July 9 to call for free and fair elections.
“I believe if there are evil enemies who want to attack the country from without and within, ‘anak-anak lincah’ will rise to fight them,” said Najib in a fiery speech last night.
Continue reading “Najib endorses silat groups despite their threat to Bersih”

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Are police waging war against the Agong?

Malaysiakini Your Say | Jul 7, 11

‘Who are the communists – the rakyat or Umnoputra? They are doing what Mao Zedong had done by clamping down the rakyat.’

DAP: Continued clampdown an affront to Agong

Swipenter: The Umno regime and PDRM (Royal Malaysian Police) must immediately desist from harassing the Bersih 2.0 supporters and release all those who are detained under Emergency Ordinance immediately now that the Agong has spoken and a compromise has been reached.

The Agong’s consent in meeting S Ambiga and two others and the go-ahead given by Najib to have the rally to be held in a stadium is nothing short of acknowledging the legitimacy of Bersih 2.0.
Continue reading “Are police waging war against the Agong?”

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Bersih clearly played out by Najib

Malaysiakini Your Say | Jul 7, 11

‘Now that Bersih 2.0 organisers agree to hold the rally inside a stadium, Najib directs the stadiums not to allow it to happen.’

But Stadium Merdeka refuses Bersih’s booking

Rayfire: The authorities will use all avenues to stop the rally. They have already started with their so-called weapons find. PM Najib Razak was just appearing to be nice when he offered them to rally in a stadium, knowing for a fact that his minions will ensure that no such thing happens.

Yesterday they made commuters to KL angry hoping they will blame Bersih 2.0 for their woes but that didn’t work.
Continue reading “Bersih clearly played out by Najib”

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Wake up, BN doesn’t play by the rules

Malaysiakini Your Say | Jul 7, 11

‘How come a ‘titah’ from Agong can be ignored by BN government? Is this a crisis of sorts about to begin between the royalty and Umno?’

Home minister: Bersih still illegal

SusahKes: This is precisely why Umno will never learn – not until they are sent to the political wilderness.

If S Ambiga didn’t meet with the Agong or refused to back down from the rally, then she and Bersih would be labelled as traitors. And the likes of Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein would have a field day portraying them as such.
Continue reading “Wake up, BN doesn’t play by the rules”

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Councillors in the dock: Another one for the books

Malaysiakini Vox Populi | Jul 7, 11

‘Malaysia will enter the Guiness Book of Records as a Third World country for disallowing the wearing of yellow.’

Yellow tees: 11 councillors to be charged tomorrow

Ong Guan Sin: The case will surely collapse as there is no basis of circumstances and law to support the ‘illegal’ declaration against Bersih 2.0 T-shirts. It is a total waste of public resources to pursue the case.

As a 1Malaysia government so fond of setting itself key performance indicators (KPI), this waste of public resources should be factored into its KPIs – the rakyat will judge you accordingly. In fact, the public resources are abused in this case to just inconvenience and burden the good people of Bersih and its supporters.
Continue reading “Councillors in the dock: Another one for the books”

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Roadblocks to check for weapons? My foot!

Malaysiakini Your Say | Jul 7, 11

‘How can you prevent anything just by sitting in your tent or waving all the cars to go through? You are merely causing inconvenience.’

Traffic gridlock in pre-Bersih rally roadblocks

Zzzz: I commented in Malaysiakini earlier that the authorities will make it very difficult for people to move about. You can bet that come this Saturday, they will make it 10 times worse than yesterday morning.

They aim to make it impossible (at all cost) for people to get together to rally, regardless of whether or not the rally is held in the stadium. Or whether Bersih is legal or illegal.
Continue reading “Roadblocks to check for weapons? My foot!”

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Gov’t briefing on Bersih threat comes unstuck

By Terence Netto
Jul 6, 11 | MalaysiaKini

A briefing yesterday by the police and the Election Commission meant to give credence to government claims that the planned Bersih march was fraught with the threat of violence came unstuck when it ran into a thicket of sceptical questions from those being briefed.

Present at the briefing which was held in a leading hotel in Kuala Lumpur even as Bersih’s top leaders were being granted an audience by the king at Istana Negara, were some 30 members comprising leaders of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST), Suhakam, and a couple of NGOs. Continue reading “Gov’t briefing on Bersih threat comes unstuck”

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Why am I not surprised?

By Shanker
July 06, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

JULY 6 — So, the Home Minister remains adamant that Bersih is an illegal outfit, notwithstanding that the highest Ruler in the land has implied his acquiescence by meeting with Bersih representatives yesterday.

Sigh … what else can we say about Umno that hasn’t been said already? The whole world has taken flight at an unimaginable rate in this 21st century; changes are happening all around the globe — just witness Thailand’s maturity in the democratic process … Continue reading “Why am I not surprised?”

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Is Putrajaya joking about Bersih?

By The Malaysian Insider
July 06, 201

JULY 6 — The circumstances surrounding the July 9 Bersih rally have been changing since the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin issued a rare edict and met both the prime minister and Bersih leaders.

Somethings haven’t changed. Bersih is still outlawed. Wearing their yellow T-shirt with the word Bersih will land you in the lock-up.

Government agencies like Stadium Merdeka are waiting for the Cabinet to direct them whether to accept Bersih’s application. The police are waiting for Bersih’s application which must state the venue. Continue reading “Is Putrajaya joking about Bersih?”

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Protestors in pro-Bersih clothes will be arrested, warns Deputy IGP

By Clara Chooi
July 06, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, July 6 — Despite being allowed to hold a stadium rally this Saturday, protestors found with pro-Bersih 2.0 materials will still be arrested, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said today.

This, he said, was because the coalition was still deemed an unlawful organisation and any item, whether “songkoks or T-shirts” are still disallowed.

“On clothing or items with Bersih motifs on them, as far as we are concerned, Bersih 2.0 has been gazetted as illegal so anything to do with Bersih 2.0 will be wrong, will be disallowed and we will take action,” he told a press conference at the Bukit Aman police headquarters this afternoon. Continue reading “Protestors in pro-Bersih clothes will be arrested, warns Deputy IGP”

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PR backs Bersih’s Merdeka Stadium plan, expects 300,000

By Melissa Chi and Lisa J. Ariffin
July 06, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, July 6 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) announced today that they supported Bersih 2.0’s proposal to have the rally in Merdeka Stadium on July 9, although the request to use the stadium has yet to be approved.

“So Pakatan Rakyat supports Bersih to hold their rally in Stadium Merdeka although in the latest report, the prime minister, especially the home minister, took a turn and had purposely given all kinds of excuses not to allow the use of the stadium,” Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim told reporters here after a PR Leadership Council meeting. Continue reading “PR backs Bersih’s Merdeka Stadium plan, expects 300,000”