Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Najib express gratitude to Tuanku Mizan
- Govt plans to engage with hackers
- PM: Govt to meet Bersih over stadium for rally
- Perkasa to decide on rally tomorrow
- Malay NGOs want Ambiga’s citizenship revoked
- Ex-Bukit Merah owner takes RM1b Lynas stake
- Grow up and work with Bersih, Najib
- Call for class action against Police Act
- Postal voting still relevant, says EC
- EC: Redelineation done according to federal constitution principles
- International community piles pressure on PM
- Let Bersih march, say academics
- Pakatan’s emergency Bersih meet tomorrow
- Georgia's National Police Corruption Project
- Parties move to defuse tension over rallies
- Khairy offers to work with Bersih if rally called off
- PSM 23 charged under Societies Act and ISA
| Najib express gratitude to Tuanku Mizan Posted: 04 Jul 2011 10:53 PM PDT (Bernama) - Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today conveyed his heartfelt thanks to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin over His Majesty's concern that illegal street demonstrations should not be carried out in the country because they could threaten peace and harmony. "I wish to express thanks to Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan for his great concern to ensure that there will not be any incidents which can jeopardise the peace and security of our country."Upon his great and deep sense of responsibility and concern, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had ordered all quarters against holding illegal street demonstrations that have been planned for July 9. "I wish to thank all parties who have heeded the advice of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and hence, no street demonstrations will be held on July 9," he said. He told this to reporters after chairing a meeting of the governing council of Malaysia Innovation Agency here today. The Coalition for Free and Fair Elections (Bersih) which had intended to organise the illegal street demonstrations on July 9 has now changed its plans and will instead hold a gathering in a stadium. The U-turn came about after its chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan had an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at Istana Negara today.
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| Govt plans to engage with hackers Posted: 04 Jul 2011 08:26 PM PDT
(Bernama) - The Government plans to engage with cyber hackers to understand them better and put their skill to good use, Deputy Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof said Tuesday. It planned attending their annual conferences of cyber hackers who, he said, "should not be looked at only negatively". "CyberSecurity, the National Security Council, police and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission must be with them so that we can get to know a bigger networking circle among the hackers," he told reporters here. The Government would be better able to distinguish between good and bad hackers and also "learn... how to defend ourselves," he added after opening a seminar on legal and technical aspects of cyber crime. The three-day seminar is organised by the Attorney-General's Chambers in collaboration with CyberSecurity Malaysia. Meanwhile, CyberSecurity Chief Executive Officer Lt Col Datuk Husin Jazri said there were lessons learnt from the recent cyber hacking incident. He said there was need to engage with young people who possess hacking talent. "Sometimes these young people are not happy with certain issues or action and resort to hacking. We need to engage with them so that we can turn them around to channel their dissatisfaction and grievances in a positive way," he said.
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| PM: Govt to meet Bersih over stadium for rally Posted: 04 Jul 2011 08:11 PM PDT
(The Star) - The Government is prepared to meet with Bersih 2.0 to discuss the movement's plan to organise the July 9 rally in a stadium. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said which stadium would depend on the request from the organisers. "We will respond to that accordingly. "What is important is for them to come to the stadium peacefully and orderly, and leave in the same manner," he told newsmen after chairing Agensi Inovasi Malaysia's first governance council meeting here Tuesday. Earlier Tuesday, Bersih 2.0 chief Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan emerged after an audience with the King and said the planned street march had been called off. Instead, the rally would be held in a stadium, she added.
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| Perkasa to decide on rally tomorrow Posted: 04 Jul 2011 07:38 PM PDT
Perkasa approves of Bersih's decision but will only decide whether to proceed with its own rally tomorrow. "We feel that the King shouldn't have indulged Bersih," Syed Hassan said. "Ambiga asked to see the King like he was her uncle or something. But the fact is that our King is willing to meet with them for the sake of his people's safety. And we deeply respect him for that." (Free Malaysia Today) - Malay rightwing group Perkasa has welcomed the Bersih's decision to hold the July 9 rally in a stadium, but said it will only decide whether or not to call off its own rally at a meeting tomorrow. Bersih chairman S Ambiga, steering committee member Zaid Kamaruddin and national laureate A Samad Said were granted an audience by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Abidin at 2pm today after which a decision was made to hold the rally in a stadium. "We welcome Bersih's decision," Perkasa secretary-general, Syed Hassan Syed Ali, told FMT. "It's good for the people, country, economy and tourism. We will decide whether or not to proceed with our rally after our executive committee meeting tomorrow." Perkasa had consistently stressed that its presence on the ground on July 9 would be purely to preserve the nation's security. Perkasa also said that it would cancel its rally if the Bersih rally was called off. "But we also want the police to monitor the rally very closely even though it is being held in an enclosed area," Syed Hassan added. "We don't trust these people… we don't trust them." He also admitted that Perkasa was disappointed that Bersih was granted an audience with the King. Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali, yesterday railed at Bersih leaders for being "insolent" and "holding the King to ransom" by demanding an audience with him. Ibrahim pointed out that similar requests by Perkasa had been turned down and asked that the King ignore Bersih's request as well.
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| Malay NGOs want Ambiga’s citizenship revoked Posted: 04 Jul 2011 05:15 PM PDT
Two Malay groups in Penang want Ambiga's citizenship revoked for allegedly challenging the King's authority. (Free Malaysia Today) - Bersih 2.0 leader S Ambiga's citizenship is being questioned again. This time two Malay groups want her citizenship revoked for allegedly challenging the King's authority. Perkasa north-east branch head Mohd Rizuad Mohd Azudin and Pesatuan Suara Anak-Anak Malaysia (PSAM) head Mohamed Ghani Abdul Jiman both claimed that Ambiga had defied the King's command to stop all rallies in the country. On Sunday the King said any rally would bring more harm than good to the country, but the duo claimed Ambiga was stubborn not to call off the planned Bersih Rally 2.0 this Saturday. Both accused Ambiga of being 'arrogant' to seek a Royal audience at Istana Negara before deciding whether or not to call of any rally. They claimed Ambiga clearly defied the order and challenged the King when she said that she would only halt the rally if the King personally commanded Bersih to do so. "Ambiga arrogance is appalling…her citizenship should be revoked immediately. She should leave Malaysia to live in another country if she feels that can better serve her interests," said both Rizuad and Ghani at a joint press conference. Malaysian opposition-backed activists said yesterday that they would scrap the rally on Saturday if the country's constitutional monarch personally urged them to do so. Today, Ambiga agreed to move the Bersih rally to indoor after meeting the King at Istana Negara. Perkasa and Umno youth wing have also expressed willingness to cancel their own rallies meant to counter the Bersih rally. Police reports lodged Yang diPertuan Agong Mizan Zainal Abidin warned in a rare political statement late on Sunday that street demonstrations "bring more bad than good". He said demands for democracy should not destroy the country and urged the government and Bersih to resolve the matter through dialogue.
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| Ex-Bukit Merah owner takes RM1b Lynas stake Posted: 04 Jul 2011 03:24 PM PDT By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 — Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, part of the same group of companies which owned the Asian Rare Earth (ARE) plant in Bukit Merah, Perak, has taken a RM1 billion stake in Australian miner Lynas Corp, the Dow Jones newswire reported today. The 9.99 per cent stake taken by Japan's largest financial group comes despite uncertainty over Lynas's rare earth refinery in Kuantan to start by year-end following a government review asking 11 recommendations to be met prior to licensing despite the plant being tagged safe. Mitsubishi Chemicals, also part of the Mitsubishi Group, was forced to shut the ARE plant in Ipoh, Perak in 1992 following public protests over radiation pollution. Nearly 20 years on, the company is still undertaking a RM300 million cleanup as radiation is still being linked to diseases such as leukaemia, which has killed seven in the neighbourhood in the past five years. The move underlines Japan's economic dependence on the material crucial for high technology products such as smartphones, hybrid cars and wind turbines after a diplomatic spat with China last year. China controls more than 90 per cent of the current market but Lynas says the plant being constructed in the Gebeng industrial zone will meet one-sixth of global demand once fully operational.
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| Grow up and work with Bersih, Najib Posted: 04 Jul 2011 03:19 PM PDT
By Jeswan Kaur, FMT An innocent intention to undertake a walk for democracy has got Barisan Nasional, the police, the National Fatwa Council, the Election Commission, the bogeyman of Umno and even a silat grandmaster going hysterical, to the extent of willing to cause hurt to organisers and participants of the Bersih 2.0 rally. July 9 has become a date synonymous with anarchy and hidden agenda, as far as Umno president and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak is trying so very hard to imply. Looks like the impact made by the inaugural Bersih rally on Nov 10, 2007, still haunts Umno. It was said to have attracted between 30,000 to 50,000 people and played a major role in helping the opposition parties win big in the 2008 general election. The 2007 rally was intercepted by the police using tear gas and chemical-laced water cannons. Four years later, Bersih 2.0 is going on another rally, on July 9. The aim, as far as its chief S Ambiga is concerned is to clean up the electoral system, to ensure elections are conducted in a just manner. Still, Bersih 2.0 failed to realise that the heartburn the 2007 rally caused Umno never went away. This explains the hysteria behind Najib's actions this time around to leave nothing to chance, to ensure July 9 favours his leadership as the premier. All means are being deployed by the Najib administration to ensure the July 9 rally never sees the light of the day. Participants of Saturday's "Walk for Democracy" are being harassed and hounded with threats of imprisonment, including using the Internal Security Act draconian law against the organisers. The truth however is that the walk, organised by election watchdog Bersih 2.0 is a cry for clean and fair elections, which to BN and Umno is asking for the impossible, hence all attempts by Umno to thwart the spirits of all those behind the rally. What however is unforgiving is the way the police treated the 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) activists detained in Kepala Batas, Penang, while campaigning for their "Udahlah" Bersaralah" (Enough already – Retire Now) roadshow campaign. PSM secretary-general S Arutchelvan said the 30 were not campaigning for the Bersih 2.0 July 9 rally. Arutchelvan said the police was mistreating the Hindu detainees, giving them beef to eat, knowing fully well eating beef goes against their religious belief . 'People first' – truth or fallacy Now, with all the rantings about national unity and harmony by Najib, what does he, the Penang police chief Ayub Yaakob, Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar and Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein have to say about the police brutality being carried out towards the PSM activists detained in what is seen as Najib's way of sending a message to Bersih 2.0 chief, lawyer Ambiga Sreenevasan. The detainees were denied visitation rights, visits by their lawyers, proper medical care and treatment and also basic items like toothpaste and soap.
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| Call for class action against Police Act Posted: 04 Jul 2011 03:13 PM PDT
By Humayun Kabir, FMT IPOH: A human rights lawyer has called for a class-action suit to challenge the constitutional validity of Section 27 of the Police Act, which sets conditions for the granting of permits for public rallies."Section 27 of the Police Act has to be challenged in court as it contradicts Articles 4(1)(a) and (b) of the Constitution," said Leong Cheok Keng, who gained prominence two years ago as counsel for former Perak menteri besar Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin in his suit against Barisan Nasional's takeover of the state government. Article 4(1)(a) of the Federal Constitution provides for freedom of speech and expression and Article 4(1)(b) gives citizens the right to peaceful assembly. Under Section 27 of the Police Act, a group intending to hold a public rally must apply for a permit 90 days before the event and the district police chief give his decision within three days. If the application is rejected, an appeal to the chief police officer (CPO) of the state must be filed within 48 hours. The CPO's decision is final. It cannot be challenged in court. Leong contends that Section 27 is unconstitutional. |
| Postal voting still relevant, says EC Posted: 04 Jul 2011 03:10 PM PDT (Bernama) - KUALA LUMPUR: The Election Commission (EC) has defended the postal voting system which allows security forces personnel and their spouses as well as Malaysians working or studying abroad, to exercise their right as voters. If this system was done away with, it would affect security and public order because members of security forces would have to abandon their bases to cast their votes on polling day, the EC said in a booklet explaining the various issues raised over the country's election system. The EC said it was constantly looking for the best way to strengthen the postal voting system, including implementing advance voting. "Voters will be gathered in one place two or three days before the polling day. "This system is not applicable, however, for Malaysians who are residing abroad and members of security forces who are on duties in their forward bases because of difficulties in gathering them," it said. On the registration of spouses of military or police personnel as postal voters, the EC said the matter was provided for under the Elections (Postal Voting) Regulations 2003. The EC said applications to become postal electors were scrutinised in a stringent manner. Meanwhile, the EC said it had no plan to implement automatic registration of voters for Malaysians who had reached the voting age of 21. Doing so would inconvenience the electors as most of them do not live in the address stated in their identification documents, which were used to register them as electors, the EC said in the booklet. It added that people often moved places without informing the National Registration Department about the change of address. If they were registered automatically based on the address in their identification documents, and if they had moved to other places, it would be difficult for them to return to vote in their registered polling centres, it said. - Bernama |
| EC: Redelineation done according to federal constitution principles Posted: 04 Jul 2011 03:08 PM PDT (Bernama) - KUALA LUMPUR: Five previous redelineation of electoral constituencies and boundaries carried out by the Election Commission (EC) was done in accordance with Article 113 (2) of the Federal Constitution. The EC said the redelineation of electoral boundaries had never breached the principles of the Federal Constitution. Looking at the electoral boundaries, not a single redelineation exercise had breached the state or parliamentary constituencies, said EC in a book published to clarify issues related to elections. The EC said it would always try to accommodate the electoral boundaries for state or parliament constituencies within a district except for some exceptional cases. "There are some cases in which the redelineation of a Parliament seat may involve two districts, just like Kulim/Bandar Baru, Tanjung karang/Kuala Selangor and a few others in Sabah and Sarawak," said the EC. Even the redelineation of a seat involving two districts, does not breach the principles of the Federal Constitution. "The only problem that we can foresee for the elected representative is related to administration and the fact that he may have to attend more meetings. "However, so far, elected representatives have not faced any major problem since they understand their responsibilities when being elected," said the EC. As for the cleaning up of the electoral list, the EC claimed that the process could not be carried out without valid information from the National Registration Department. The next of kin of a deceased member must provide details of the person's death to the department so that the department can issue a dead person's certificate for the EC to update its data. As for the campaigning period of between seven to nine days, the EC said the period was sufficient for all political parties because a longer campaigning period would incur additional cost. The EC would, however, continue to carry out studies to upgrade and accommodate such requests in accordance with the law. - Bernama |
| International community piles pressure on PM Posted: 04 Jul 2011 02:51 PM PDT By Stephanie Sta Maria, FMT PETALING JAYA: The international human rights community today expressed its strongest condemnation yet of the crackdown on Bersih 2.0 with an open letter to prime minister, Najib Tun Razak. The three-page letter was signed by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, World Organisation Against Torture, International Federation for Human Rights and Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development. Copies were also sent to Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, Information, Communications and Culture Minister Rais Yatim, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Nazri Aziz and Inspector General of Police Ismail Omar. While the NGOs decried the spate of arrests and the banning of the rally, their most vocal opposition was against the use of the Emergency Ordinance (EO) on the six Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members. They stated that Malaysia's use of draconian preventive detention laws was incompatible with its seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). The NGOs also reminded Najib of his pledge in 2009 to "uphold civil liberties" and "regard for fundamental rights of the people of Malaysia". "We call on you to turn these pledges into concrete action by asking law enforcement officers to immediately cease use of all preventive detention laws, and by starting a time-bound process to repeal those laws," the letter read. "The Malaysian penal code and criminal justice system are fully capable of addressing situations of internal security, and should be allowed to do so without resorting to preventive detention." Alarm bells The NGOs pointed out that government was violating the right to freedom of association by designating Bersih as an "illegal organisation" under Section 5 of the Societies Act of 1966. "Your government has failed to provide any credible evidence to substantiate the Registrar of Societies' claims that Bersih is trying to topple the government, or is a risk to public order, safety, economy and sovereignity," they added.
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| Let Bersih march, say academics Posted: 04 Jul 2011 02:49 PM PDT By Tashny Sukumaran, FMT KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian academics say the Bersih crisis can be solved if the government drops all charges, release those detained and permit Bersih to march peacefully on Saturday. The group of academics, who include political analysts Azmi Sharom, Terence Gomez and Lim Teck Ghee, said that the march was "undeniably noble", and expressed disapproval that the government was resorting to "harsh measures and use of draconian laws" to stop the rally from happening. "They are a legitimate expression of the freedom and rights of the citizens of a country. A government that uses laws, institutions and resources of the state to suppress or repress such activities undermines its own credibility and claim to practising democracy," the academicians said in a statement today. Some of the other signatories are well-respected local academics like Mustafa K Anuar, Andrew Aeria, Christopher Chong, Sharmani Gabriel, Francis Loh, Ooi Kee Beng, Janet Pillai, Johan Saravanamuttu, Tan Sooi Beng, Yeoh Seng Guan and Diana Wong. The statement calls the relevant authorities not only to release all those who have been detained, but also for both the government and the opposition to commit to a code of peaceful conduct during the marches. "Public assemblies and marches in support of causes that have attracted widespread public concern are a common feature of all democratic systems," said the academics.
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| Pakatan’s emergency Bersih meet tomorrow Posted: 04 Jul 2011 02:47 PM PDT By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 — The Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leadership council will hold an emergency meeting tomorrow after the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's call for Bersih 2.0 organisers to meet with the Najib administration. DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said in a statement that the meeting will discuss the advice of Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin even as Bersih chief Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said yesterday that she will cancel the July 9 rally if asked by the King. "I am most impressed by the advice of the King, particularly when he (urged) 'the government to carry out everything that is entrusted to it by the people in a just and wise manner... do not want to see... animosity among them or a section of the people being enemies with the government," the Ipoh Timur MP said. Lim insisted that the electoral reform movement was planning a peaceful rally and allegations by the police and government of reviving communism and subversion by foreign powers were simply "imaginary enemies." "A 'just and wise' government would never have allowed the situation to degenerate and descend into a national hysteria," he added. Immediately after Tuanku Mizan's statement on Sunday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak offered yesterday to allow the now outlawed Bersih to gather in a stadium. In turn, Ambiga said she would seek an audience with the King and call off the rally if asked to do so. The atmosphere ahead of Saturday's planned march has heightened after the government embarked on a nationwide clampdown on Bersih 2.0, hoping to block the now-outlawed coalition's plans for its July 9 rally.
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| Georgia's National Police Corruption Project Posted: 04 Jul 2011 02:12 PM PDT  (NPR.org) Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has targeted corruption in his first year of office. To that end, he revamped the police force — by firing all of the traffic police in his country, cutting 30,000 police from the payroll. Robert Siegel talks with Saakashvili, who is in New York for a world summit of the United Nations. MELISSA BLOCK, host: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block. ROBERT SIEGEL, host: And I'm Robert Siegel. Among the world leaders converging on New York this week for a United Nations summit is Mikhail Saakashvili. He is the president of the Republic of Georgia, the former Soviet republic. Mr. Saakashvili is an American-educated lawyer who led Georgia's Rose Revolution last year. He came to our New York bureau to talk about one area of reform that his government has undertaken, reforming the police. President MIKHAIL SAAKASHVILI (Republic of Georgia): Basically, we had one of the most corrupt police forces. And the way it functioned was very simple. Government told the policemen, `You are supposed to be out there, keep order. You need to have some kind of cars, but we are not going to buy for you any cars. We are not going to put in any gasoline in that car, so you have to get money for it yourselves. You need to wear some kind of uniforms. We don't care where you get them from. And you also should sustain yourself, I mean, of course, because we are not even going to pay you because the payment was pretty symbolic. And not only do you have to take bribes from the people but you also have to share part of your corrupt income with your superiors--I mean, with the government that appointed you.' SIEGEL: The cop was a thug with a franchise from the government (unintelligible) yeah. Pres. SAAKASHVILI: Absolutely, absolutely, that was what it was. And so what we did--I mean, for the first few months we tried to temper it. You know, we urged them to be honest, you know, increased their pay. It didn't help. So, in the end, basically, 80 to 90 percent of all policemen were fired. SIEGEL: And how many individuals are we talking about ...(unintelligible)? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: We are talking about 25 to 30,000 people. SIEGEL: All of them fired? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: Yeah, SIEGEL: Yeah. Pres. SAAKASHVILI: And it was pretty miserable. Now people thought that we would have disaster because it was in the beginning of holiday season; therefore, that we will have a real chaos with traffic disasters. Nothing like of this sort has happened because what it proved was that this police was not only producing order, it was producing disorder. So then we had new guys recruited. And it took us two to three months to find good guys and to give them initial training at an academy which is sponsored by the US. But what we also did, we gave them new, nice uniforms that look very much unlike the old Soviet ones. We gave them new, nice German cars, American radios, the US kind of looking badges and painting which we gave them. So... SIEGEL: Appearances are important here, you're saying? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: Yeah, it is. SIEGEL: Yeah. Pres. SAAKASHVILI: But besides, we gave them 20 times, in some cases, higher salaries, which they started to... SIEGEL: Twenty times higher salaries? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: Well, we are talking very roughly--I mean, we--they used to get like 30 to $40 and we got them minimum salary now--minimum money is 3 to $400, but we are talking about men... SIEGEL: Per week? Per week? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: These are monthly, but for Eastern Europe these are pretty high salaries. And... SIEGEL: Now what do you do with the 30,000 cops you fired? Are they barred forever from becoming police officers? Are they barred from public employment? What happens to them? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: No. First of all, most of them did have savings because they were corrupt and they had money. You know, in the beginning we had trouble recruiting people because many people would not take jobs that had such a bad reputation. Now there is a long line of applicants. SIEGEL: Is the crime rate in Tbilisi lower today than it was three years ago, say? Pres. SAAKASHVILI: You know what? If you look at figures it's much, much higher, but I'll tell you why. Because police in the old system would not register crimes. Nobody--many people wouldn't even bother going to the police because it was extra headache. Now people for even the small family conflict, a lot of the spouse will go and call the police or somebody--I mean, I had neighbors that, say, lose their key and they will call the police and say, I mean, `We lost our keys. Would you please help us to open the door?' And all these cases get registered. But I think that the overall picture of crime has decreased. The old police used to beat up people. They basically used what amounted to torture to extort the evidence. And the new police force was educated and is controlled in a way where nothing like this--there is zero tolerance towards torture. Zero tolerance. Everybody thought that there was no way to keep crimes checked unless you occasionally beat them up or managed them with beating them up or blackmail them into something. No, our examples show that you can reverse the crime trend even by being civilized. SIEGEL: Well, President Saakashvili, it's very good to talk with you once again. Pres. SAAKASHVILI: Thank you, enjoyed it. SIEGEL: Mikhail Saakashvili is the president of Georgia. He's in New York attending the session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
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| Parties move to defuse tension over rallies Posted: 04 Jul 2011 10:21 AM PDT By Azril Annuar, Pauline Wong and Hemananthani Sivanandam, The Sun In a positive response to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's call for compromise and moderation to avoid trouble arising from protest marches planned for Saturday, the government and the organisers of the rallies today moved to defuse the tension which had built up in past weeks.
The prime minister said a venue would be offered to the rally organisers if they wanted to present a memorandum to the King. And the leader of Bersih 2.0 said the organisers would seek an audience with His Majesty and abide by the King's advice. Umno Youth, which planned to hold a rally to counter Bersih, announced that it had called off its plans. Warning that street demonstrations may bring more bad than good, although the original intention is good, the King had on Sunday counselled the government and the organisers of the three protest marches, the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih), Umno Youth and Malay rights group Perkasa, to resolve the issue through consultation rather than acting on their emotions. Making the first move to defuse the situation, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak said the government was willing to allow the Bersih rally, provided it is not a street demonstration. "If they want to present a memorandum, request it nicely from the authorities. We are willing to give them a stadium for them to gather," he said, at the Prime Minister's Department monthly assembly in Putrajaya this morning. "The government will not stop them from having a demonstration in a stadium from morning till night. They can shout all they want but don't hold a street demonstration as it has the risk of endangering the nation," said Najib, adding that a street demonstration meant they had different intentions. Najib's compromise offer was vastly softer than the no-compromise positions taken by the Home Ministry and the police earlier. Last week, the police announced they were no longer willing to negotiate or compromise with Bersih 2.0 organisers, and began a crackdown which has so far seen over 150 people detained for questioning. On Saturday, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had declared that Bersih 2.0 is illegal and justified the crackdown. Najib said there was no guarantee the proposed demonstration will be peaceful, as irresponsible parties might take advantage of the rally. "There may be those who like to incite riots and cause disturbances that will take advantage of the situation and join the rally, leading to undesirable incidents. We must think of this, the worse that can happen, before it's too late. "We must avoid making emotional decisions, taking emotional actions.There are other avenues available," he said, adding that the Election Commission (EC) is willing to review any legislation regarding the electoral process and to improve it where possible. "We are willing to make improvements. The EC had said it is willing to implement a biometric system to dispel the perception that there are phantom voters, he added. Bersih 2.0 chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan told a press conference that following an emergency meeting of the coalition's steering committee, the coalition had sought an audience with the King towards resolving issues surrounding the Bersih 2.0 rally. "The coalition will abide by the advice of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, even if it means calling off the rally. As a matter of respect (to the King), we want to communicate with His Majesty our decision first before making an announcement," said Ambiga, urging the media not to speculate as to what the outcome of the meeting will be. "We want to resolve this in the best interest of all concerned," she said. Umno Youth today announced it had cancelled its plans to have a rally to coincide with the Bersih rally on Saturday. Its deputy chief Datuk Razali Ibrahim said the decision was made to abide by the King's advice. "We take the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's advice seriously. Thus, I have urged Patriot not to continue with the rally to heed Tuanku's advice that all parties should adhere to the rule of law to defend the country's Constitution," he said. Umno Youth had last month launched "Himpunan Patriot" (Patriots Rally), to support the current electoral system. Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hussin Syed Ali hinted that Perkasa may be willing to call off its counter-rally, but will announce its final decision tomorrow. "If Bersih continues with the rally, so will we. This is our decision for now," he said in a text message.
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| Khairy offers to work with Bersih if rally called off Posted: 04 Jul 2011 10:16 AM PDT By Shannon Teoh, The Malaysian Insider KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 — Umno Youth will call off its counter-rally and instead back some Bersih 2.0 demands if the latter cancels its July 9 march, says Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin. Khairy told The Malaysian Insider yesterday the youth wing will offer the olive branch as it has always acknowledged that the present system required improvements that could be worked out with the Election Commission. "We believe that a united bipartisan front on points that we agree on will be more effective if Bersih really wants change," the Umno Youth chief said. In an unexpected turn of events yesterday, Bersih pledged to abide by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin's advice to negotiate with the government instead of forcing a confrontation. Former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan who leads the coalition — which was declared illegal last week by the government — of 62 NGOs said she will seek an audience with the King before Saturday and call off the rally if told to do so. "I've always said that we support the present system but that acknowledge improvements are needed," Khairy added. The Rembau MP, who is still overseas on a volunteer mission to Gaza, Palestine, said that Umno Youth would support a cleaning of dead individuals on the electoral roll, overseas voting, free access to all media and television slots for all parties contesting elections. "These can all be on the table for negotiation," he said. Both Perkasa and Umno Youth had declared earlier yesterday they'd reciprocate a Bersih stand down. Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin's statement Sunday led to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak making an offer yesterday to provide Bersih with a stadium for their rally if they opted out of a capital march.
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| PSM 23 charged under Societies Act and ISA Posted: 04 Jul 2011 02:23 AM PDT They are accused of being in possession of Bersih pamphlets and subversive documents. (Free Malaysia Today) - Twenty-three members of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) were charged in the magistrate's court today with possession of 600 photocopies of Bersih pamphlets and subversive documents. The accused ranged in age from 17 to 64. They were granted bail of RM4,000 for each of the two charges. Thirteen posted bail today and the others are expected to do so tomorrow. But police released all of them. Pertaining to the Bersih pamphlets, they were charged under Section 48(1) of the Societies Act or alternatively Section 43 of the act. Section 48(1) carries a jail sentence not exceeding five years or a fine not above RM15,000 or both. Section 43 carries a jail term not above three years or a maximum fine of RM3,000 or both. The charge for possession of subversive documents came under the Section 29(1) of the Internal Security Act. It carries a jail sentence of not more than five years or a fine not more than RM10,000 or both. The prosecution said they committed both offences at Sungai Dua toll plaza of the North-South Expressway at 3.30pm on June 25. Thirteen of the accused are women and two are boys. The women are Cheang Sew Yin, 60, Soh Sock Hwa, 29, Chan Mooi, 55, K Kamala Devi, 57, K Deeeba, 22, K Thanusia, 21, G Packialetchumy, 40, R Saroza, 64, R Nalayani, 64, M Santhana Devi, 30, P Indra, 54, P Jody, 52 and M Kavitha, 35. The boys are J Raveen Veerasenan and S Thivya Kumar, both 17 years old. The other eight suspects are A Shanmugam, 57, M Ravindran, 20, M Arokiam, 62, G Velaitham, 54, M Sivoosamy, 52, S Ramasamy, 35, Gana Santhanam, 45, and S Selvam, 42. Another man, S. Murugan, the driver of the bus in which the activists were travelling when they were arrested, was released without any charges. Another teenager, S Ragu, 16, who was released on police bail on June 26, failed to turn up to face charges today. The prosecution asked the court for another date for his case.
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