Anwar Ibrahim |
- Amnesty Iinternational: Jangan Bentang Permaidani Merah Bagi Najib
- Laporan Media Jepun Tentang Himpunan BERSIH 2.0
- Crackdown 2.0 in Malaysia
- Malaysia: Police Use Brutal Tactics Against Peaceful Protester
- My Bersih 2.0 Experience
| Amnesty Iinternational: Jangan Bentang Permaidani Merah Bagi Najib Posted: 12 Jul 2011 01:57 AM PDT Amnesty International hari ini menggesa Perdana Menteri Britain David Cameron dan Pope Benedict supaya tidak membentangkan ‘permaidani merah’ kepada Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak kerana layanan buruk dan tindakan kejam kerajaan pimpinannya terhadap perhimpunan aman rakyat Sabtu lalu. Ramai dikasari Selain menahan peserta perhimpunan, pihak keselamatan turut melepaskan gas pemedih mata secara terus kepada orang ramai dan dalam kawasan hospital sebagai usaha menggagalkan perarakan ke Stadium Merdeka. Selain itu, kata Guest, beliau juga berharap pihak Vatican dapat memberi tekanan kepada Najib supaya menghormati hak asasi manusia ketika Najib melawat Rom minggu ini. |
| Laporan Media Jepun Tentang Himpunan BERSIH 2.0 Posted: 11 Jul 2011 08:02 PM PDT |
| Posted: 11 Jul 2011 07:49 PM PDT With its response to Bersih 2.0, a rally for electoral reform, the government has created an environment of fear and repression Based on the evidence of this weekend’s rally in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysians aspire for a more competitive political system than what they have. Also based on this weekend’s evidence, Prime Minister Najib Razak isn’t prepared to give it to them. An estimated 20,000 or more people peacefully gathered in Kuala Lumpur Saturday to call for free and fair elections. Their complaints included vote-rigging and gerrymandering of constituencies to the ruling party’s benefit. Bersih 2.0, as the rally was called, was the biggest event of its kind in four years. The original Bersih (the word means “clean” in Malay) called for electoral reforms in 2007. As with the original rally, this one was met not by understanding from the government but by police deploying tear gas and water cannons. More than 1,600 attendees were detained and released late Sunday. One demonstrator died from a heart attack. View Full Image Associated Press The crackdown was little surprise given the government’s actions before the rally. Over the past two weeks, the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) tried its best to intimidate the organizers. More than 200 activists and opposition members were detained, some on charges of “waging war” against Malaysia’s constitutional monarch. The police arrested those wearing T-shirts affiliated with Bersih. The army publicly conducted crowd-control exercises. The situation was on the boil until the king intervened, asking both sides to settle differences. Mr. Najib offered a stadium to host the rally but then backed off. Last Thursday, he appeared with a group of martial artists who vowed to “wage war” against Bersih, saying: “If there are evil enemies who want to attack the country from within, you, my brothers, will rise to fight them.” His scare tactics backfired as thousands of protesters, further angered, arrived from across the country. Saturday’s rally has united and energized the political opposition. So the government is now downplaying the entire event and even blaming Bersih for creating chaos. The police claim only 6,000 protesters showed up. Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein complimented police efforts to keep control despite “being challenged and provoked.” He said the protesters sought “to be arrested in order to portray the government as cruel.” If the government is going to respond like this—intimidation followed by denial—a Bersih 3.0 could eventually materialize, though organizers have ruled it out anytime soon. Underlying this weekend’s events is growing public impatience with UMNO as Malaysians find rising inflation, coupled with slow reforms, eating into their standard of living. Saturday’s turnout is a sign that Malaysians also understand the link between true democracy and good government. On Sunday, Mr. Najib called on the “silent majority” of Malaysians, who he claims opposed Bersih, to speak up. If he continues to create an environment of fear and repression, he may find this silent majority speaking up soon, but against him. |
| Malaysia: Police Use Brutal Tactics Against Peaceful Protester Posted: 11 Jul 2011 07:39 PM PDT 11 July 2011 The UK government must press Malaysia's Prime Minister on freedom of assembly in his visit this week, Amnesty International said today, after peaceful protesters in Kuala Lumpur were met with police violence and 1,667 arrests at the weekend. Police arrested peaceful demonstrators, fired teargas canisters directly at protesters, and teargassed a hospital compound on 9 July, in attempts to stop the electoral reform rally known as Bersih 2.0 from gathering in a stadium. One protester, 56-year-old Baharuddin Ahmad, collapsed near the landmark Petronas Towers while fleeing teargas, and was pronounced dead later in hospital. "Prime Minister Najib's government rode roughshod over thousands of Malaysians exercising their right to peaceful protest," said Donna Guest, deputy Asia-Pacific director at Amnesty International. "This violent repression by the Royal Malaysian Police flies in the face of international human rights standards, and cannot be allowed to continue. Any future peaceful demonstrations should be permitted and respected by the authorities." Amnesty International is calling on the Malaysian authorities to investigate claims that police failed to provide prompt assistance to Baharuddin Ahmad before his death, including reports that an ambulance arrived only an hour and a half after he collapsed. Many protesters were beaten by police and officers of the Federal Reserve Unit, a special force used to suppress mass public assembly. One of the numerous Youtube videos of police violence shows plainclothes officers kicking a protester lying on the ground, while uniformed police stand by. Police also fired tear gas canisters directly at protesters, including members of the parliamentary opposition. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was injured after a canister was fired in his direction, and Khalid Samad, a Pan-Islamic Islamic Party (PAS) member of parliament, was injured after being hit in the neck by a canister. Tear gas was also fired at a hospital where protesters had retreated, putting the health of patients at risk, although this was denied by the Malaysian police. "The British government shouldn't reward this brutality by rolling out a red carpet for Malaysia's prime minister," said Donna Guest. "David Cameron should tell Prime Minister Najib that these human rights violations against peaceful reform protesters are unacceptable." Amnesty International is also calling on the Vatican to press Najib to respect human rights when the Malaysian leader visits Rome later this week. "The use of force by police at this rally was excessive, unnecessary and designed to instil fear," said Donna Guest. Around 40 people arrested in the run-up to the rally still face prosecution. Most have been charged under Section 49 of the Societies Act for possession of illegal materials, including Bersih T-shirts. Six members of the Socialist Party (PSM) have been indefinitely detained without charge under an Emergency Ordinance since 2 July. One of them, member of parliament Dr Jeyakumar Kumar, was hospitalized 10 July for a heart condition following days of prolonged interrogations. |
| Posted: 11 Jul 2011 07:32 PM PDT So I went. I have to say that the night before I had many many misgivings, especially after reading about the army doing exercises with the FRU. Could the government seriously be contemplating shooting their own people? Who knows? My stomach was in knots thinking about the many young people I knew who were intent on going, including my daughter. Would I be able to forgive myself if something happened to them? After seeking advice from various friends, I finally decided that I could not stay safely at home while my daughter, friends and colleagues faced possible danger. I had to walk with them. Besides even if I stayed home, I would have spent all my time worrying. So I had to go. A friend who lived in the city offered to be my protector and together we devised a plan on what to do. Hubby was supportive and gave some advice on how to stay safe. My neighbours also wanted to come along. So fairly earlyish, my friend drove over to get me with no problem and we headed back into the city. Despite the roadblocks in some areas, we encountered no problems. In fact driving into KL was so pleasant because the roads were so clear. The police directed traffic where they had to and were generally cooperative ( except for one we saw arguing with a man trying to get into his own condo). We got to a roadblock in the KLCC area and my friend explained that he lived in the area and they let us through, four people in a car dressed as if we were going hiking! From my friend's apartment block, we walked to Times Square and parked ourselves at the Starbucks for a coffee while we waited. A cursory look around the outlet and mall revealed that many people were doing the same thing. Meanwhile a whole van of police was stationed outside the mall but after a while they all went off. We kept in touch with various friends around the city to find out where they were and what the situation was. At about 12.30 we started to walk up Jalan Hang Tuah towards the stadium area. We were not in big groups, just people out on a weekend stroll. We thought we would encounter police in front of the big police headquarters in front of Pudu Jail but there was nothing. When we got to the corner of Jalan Hang Jebat, we saw some police motorcycles and only a couple of cops. Lots of people were just sitting on the curbside under the eye of the cops. It was pretty clear what all these people were there for. We walked along Jalan Hang Jebat in front of Stadium Negara towards the OCM and found many other friends waiting there. Apparently at one point the cops had given chase even though there was no reason to and caught some people and hauled them off. But from then on we could sit and wait by the curb without anyone disturbing us. Jalan Hang Jebat and the small road that led up to Stadium Merdeka stayed pretty quiet. Members of the Bar Council (who had to suffer wearing their suits in the heat just so that we could spot them easily) walked around observing what was happening. At one point one woman in a suit sat herself at the intersection to take notes. One lone woman lawyer at her station, Jln Hang Jebat We all debated whether to stay there or move down to Petaling Street but we were afraid that we wouldn't be let back up again. Then it started to rain. My friend and I sought shelter under some hoarding along with young people. Just then I got a message that we were to go to KL Sentral. After confirming this with a friend at Sentral, my friends and I started to walk down Hang Jebat just as a large group of people started walking up. The rain was pouring at that point and I didn't know quite what to do, whether to tell people they should turn round or not. Seeking shelter for a while under a shop five-foot way, I talked to various other friends and eventually decided to head back to the stadium area where I found my daughter and lots of other friends there. The main group earlier had gone up to Stadium Merdeka, did some chanting in front of the FRU and then headed down again. But many people hung about just to observe everything and soak in the atmosphere. One group of young people had yellow ribbons on sticks and started a little dance. Others were buying ice cream from a bicycle vendor who came by. There was a real carnival atmosphere. Here’s a video of the rally yesterday taken by my daughter. As you can see, it was peaceful. And every time some people started chanting ‘reformasi’, someone else would start a louder chant of ‘Bersih’. I have to say that I never felt safer than when I was in the crowd. People recognized me and said hello. Some wanted to take photos. It didn't feel any different from any other Saturday out. And to be perfectly fair, the cops and FRU in my area showed admirable restraint. They saw that people were not doing anything more than chanting and nobody was harming anyone so they just stood there and left everyone to do their thing. We came across a whole FRU unit blocking a lane next to the Chinese temple at the roundabout at the bottom of Jalan Maharajalela, waved at them and they waved. Cool cops! Of course not everyone had the same experience. Here's an account from a colleague who was in a different street: We were all tear-gassed at least three, four times. An NGO staffer was hit by a canister. V told me that she saw people jumping off the second floor of the Puduraya bus terminal because the police had released tear gas too close to the terminal and the wind carried the fumes into the enclosed building. When the marchers ran for shelter in Tung Shin Hospital, the police fired tear gas and water cannons INTO the hospital grounds. Later the police lured us into re-assembling on the road on the pretext of negotiating a peaceful dispersal. They arrested the MP (Sivarasa) who was doing the negotiating, then — after ordering us to sit down so (as we realised later) we would be sitting ducks — they fired more tear gas and water cannons at us. A, myself and our companions eventually managed to find a way out from the trap via the Santo Antonius church and (irony of ironies) the car park of the Hang Tuah police station (near the monorail station). There were so many very brave people yesterday. I now know that smearing toothpaste under the eyes to reduce irritation caused by tear gas actually works (thanks, A)! I’m still itchy and short of breath from all that tear gas, which is a bit annoying. But really, mostly what I remember of the rally was how moving it was: the solidarity among the protesters, how people looked out for one another. Whenever I was tear-gassed there was a stranger running along at my side and offering me and my friends salt to counteract the effects. When the police sprayed chemical-laced water cannons into the crowd and the people affected cried out for water to wash the stuff away, others turned and ran back toward the cannons with bottles of water to help. People helped others climb up a hill towards the hospital to escape (some guy helped me up the steep slope). Someone always stepped up to make sure that a panicked run doesn’t turn into a stampede, including an elderly woman who took it upon herself to guide the marchers to safety. She’s a first-time marcher to boot! Actually there were lots of first-time marchers, and more young middle-class urbanites than I’ve ever seen at any other rallies including the 2007 Bersih rally. At one point people started picking up the tear gas canisters and throwing them back at the police, or kicking the canisters safely away from the marchers and bystanders. I heard via the #bersihstories Twitter hashtag when the police fired tear gas into Tung Shin, there were people who grabbed the canisters and wrapped them in their own towels, then threw the canisters into the drain so there wouldn’t be so much fumes. And another one, about people's goodness: My group has a lovely little story to tell as well, of how we escaped from the Tung Shin hospital area after one of the tear gas attacks. We took a little alley uphill between the shophouses, and there was a block of flats there. One of the residents told us to go through the building to get out through the back! We climbed upstairs and then along the opposite corridor a woman shouted and pointed, “That way, go that way, there is an exit out the back!” and we scuttled along our corridor, down the back stairs and found ourselves safe outside on Changkat Tung Shin or something like that. Rakyat all contributing in their own ways! There are many stories and photos, both good and bad, of the whole event. But to me what was most important was that Malaysians proved two things: one, they can assemble together on a common cause peacefully and two, therefore showed that they are a mature people. The fact is that there were all kinds of people there, young and old, all races and religions and all classes and creeds. I bumped into many young people, the children of my friends, who had come to see what it was all about and decide for themselves what to think about the issue. Do these people look like hooligans to you? Whatever one thinks about the issue that Bersih is espousing, we should all be proud of our fellow Malaysians who did not, despite dire predictions by some, behave like hooligans and destroy property and hurt one another. There were people hurt and one death but people who had participated in the rally did not cause them. The restaurants and shops around the area were doing roaring business as people got thirsty and hungry. There are also some people claiming that the world now has a bad impression of Malaysia because the foreign media (and the local media for that matter) reported only about the teargassing and water-cannoning. I think people are confusing the government with the people. Yes, the world now has a bad impression of the Malaysian government because it has handled this whole issue so badly. They don't have the same impression of the Malaysians who stood up for their rights and their cause. This is what gives a good impression: protestors and police shaking hands before dispersing at 4pm. |
Menurut badan hak asasi dunia itu, Cameron (kanan) khususnya perlu memberitahu Najib yang bakal dalam rangka lawatan empat hari ke UK bermula hari ini bahawa pencabulan hak asasi seumpama itu tidak dapat diterima.
"David Cameron seharusnya memberitahu Perdana Menteri Najib bahawa pencabulan hak asasi manusi terhadap penunjuk perasaan yang aman tidak boleh diterima.
"Terdapat rakaman video di YouTube menunjukkan anggota polis berpakaian preman menendang seorang peserta yang terbaring di atas jalan sementara polis yang berpakaian seragam hanya melihat.
Pada perhimpunan BERSIH 2.0, 1,667 telah ditahan termasuk pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat.| You are subscribed to email updates from Anwar Ibrahim To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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