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BERSIHTHE UNSEAL STORY

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BERSIHTHE UNSEAL STORY

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Copyright 2012 By Yvonne Heah Yue WuenThe One Academy

Advertising & Graphic Design Student 2012

Printed at Penang, Malaysia

All photo courtesy: Googe Image

Diversey(Malaysia)Sdn. Bhd.Address: No, 6, Jalan Pengarah,

U1/29, Seksyen U1 Hicom Glenmarie Industrial Park, 40150Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

Phone: (60-3)55696363Fax: (60-3)55696262/1091

CONTENT01 INTRODUCTION02 CHAIRPERSON03 BERSIH 1.004 BERSIH 2.005 BERSIH 3.0

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01 INTRODUCTION OF BERSIH Perhaps the loudest call for a thorough reform of Malaysia’s electoral system came in the months before the historic March 8, 2008 general election.

01 INTRODUCTION OF BERSIH Bersih started out as a Joint Action Committee for Electoral Reform which was formed in July 2005. In September 2006, an Electoral Reform Workshop was held in Kuala Lumpur. Leaders from political parties, civil society groups and NGOs, including Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Lim Guan Eng, PAS, Nasharudin Mat Isa, Teresa Kok, Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud among others, came together to formulate a joint communiqué with the objective of campaigning for clean and fair elections in Malaysia.

The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections or Bersih, meaning clean in Malay, is a coalition of non-governmental organisations, NGOs, which seeks to reform the current electoral system in Malaysia to ensure free, clean and fair elections.

It was officially formed on 23 November 2006 as a joint communiqué that comprised leaders from political parties, civil society groups and NGOs. Bersih accused the Election Commission under Prime Minister’s Department for manipulating the electoral process to give an unfair advantage to the ruling National Front coalition. Bersih claimed that the electoral roll was marred by irregularities such as gerrymander-ing, phantom voters, malapportionment and postal vote frauds.

In that period, a broad swathe of civil society organisations and opposition parties came together under the umbrella of the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, better known by its Malay acronym, Bersih, to push the reform agenda. The Bersih’s massive rally in November 2007, which attracted tens of thousands of supporters, all clad in yellow as a symbol of protest, is seen as a watershed event that galvanised public opinion to press for a change of electoral rules.

With 2011 being touted as an early date for the country’s next general election, interest in reform is picking up once again.

All eyes are set on the next constituency re-delineation exercise, which is due in the same year. Former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, the new spokesperson for Bersih 2.0, sat down with Sharon Tan and Chua Sue-Ann recently to speak about Bersih 2.0’s aspirations.

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Dato’ Ambiga SreenevasanBorn 1956, is a Malaysian lawyer who served as the President of the Malaysian Bar Council from 2007 to 2009. Currently, Dato’ Dr. Ambiga is a Mediator on the Panel of the Bar Council, Malaysian Mediation Centre. She also heads Bersih 2.0, a citizen’s movement for free and fair elections. Ambiga Sreenevasan, has a remarkable record of accomplishment in Malaysia. She has pursued judicial reform and good governance, she has stood up for religious tolerance, and she has been a resolute advocate of women’s equality and their full political participation.

In July 2011, Ambiga was conferred an honorary doctorate in law by her alma mater University of Exeter. She contributed services to her profession as a lawyer as Ambiga had been vocal during her two-year term as the Malaysian Bar president from 2007 to 2009. She has played an active role in other sectors of the legal profession for almost 30 years including as a member of the Securities Industry Dispute Resolution Centre and speaking out on Malaysian intellectual property protection. She was one of 8 recipi-ents of the US Secretary of State “International Women of Courage” Award in 2009.

02 THE CHAIRPERSON, AMBIGA SREENEVASANAmbiga chaired Bersih 2.0, the organisation behind the July 2011 rally in Kuala Lumpur which drew 20,000 people. Ambiga said the rally “exploded many myths” in Malaysia, including the nation that people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds could not work together and that the middle class was “too comfortable to step up to the plate.

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02 THE CO-CHAIRPERSON, A SAMAD SAIDIn 2011, A. Samad Said, together with Ambiga Sreenevasan and other activists, helped organize the Bersih 2.0 rally for electoral reform in Malaysia.

Abdul Samad bin Muhammad Said, pen name A. Samad Said, born 9 April 1935, is a Malaysian poet and novelist who, in May 1976, was named by Malay literature communities and many of the country’s linguists as the Pejuang Sastera “Literary Exponent” receiving, within the following decade, the 1979 Southeast Asia Write Award and, in 1986, in appreciation of his continuous writings and contributions to the nation’s literary heritage, or Kesusasteraan Melayu, the title Sasterawan Negara.

A native of the Malaccan Kampung village of Belimbing Dalam, near the town of Durian Tunggal, young Abdul Samad completed his primary education during the World War II years of 1940–46 at Singapore’s Sekolah Melayu Kota Raja. During the wartime occupation of Malaya and Singapore by the Japanese Empire, he attended the occupying authorities’ Sekolah Jepun school for a brief three-month period. Upon the war’s conclusion, he furthered his studies at Singapore’s Victoria School, graduating in 1956 with Senior Cambridge Certificate. Although starting as a clerk in a hospital, he was soon able to achieve his ambition of becoming a full-time writer in Utusan Melayu, Warta Tebrau and Berita Harian, authoring numerous poems and short stories in the years to come.

UNGGUNG BERSIHSemakin lara kita didera baraKita laungkan juga pesan merdeka;Demokrasi sebenderang mentari,sehasrat hajat semurni harga diri.

Lama resah kita-demokrasi luka;lama duka kita -demokrasi lara.Demokrasi yang angkuh, kita cemuhi;suara bebas yang utuh, kita idami!

Dua abad lalu Sam Adams berseru;(di Boston dijirus teh ke laut biru):Tak diperlu gempita sorak yang gebu,diperlu hanya unggung api yang syahdu.

Kini menyalah unggun sakti itu, kini merebaklah nyala unggun itu.

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THE UNSEAL STORYSPEAK OUTWHAT WE WANTSWE OPPOSE VIOLENCEJUST REQUEST TO BECLEAN AND FAIRDURING ELCETIONBE RESPONSSIBLE TO YOURSELF

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BERSIH 1.010 NOVEMBER 2007Bersih held the first mass rally to make four demands to ensure a clean and fair electoral process in Malaysia.

The rally took place in the area of Kuala Lumpur around Dataran Merdeka, Independence Square, and Istana Negara, The National Palace. Bersih estimated the turnout to be at least 30,000, while the official claimed there were 10,000 protesters. Yellow shirts and ribbons were used as the symbol of protest as yellow is also the colour for citizen actions worldwide and for press freedom movement.

A memorandum containing the four demands was submitted to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Malaysia’s head of state, during the rally. Malaysian police refused to issue a permit for the rally, rendering the rally illegal. Tear gas and chemical-laced water cannon were used by the riot police to disperse the crowd. 245 people were detained following the protest. Following the initial rally, Bersih indicated it may hold another street demonstration if government extended the tenure of Election Commission , EC, chairperson Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman.

On 20 November 2007, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz tabled a first reading of the Constitution, Amendment Bill 2007 that sought to extend the retirement age of members of Election Commission (EC) from 65 to 66. Parliament passed legislation on 11 December to increase EC members’ retirement age from 65 to 66.

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DEMANDS401/ Clean up of the electoral roll

02/ Use of indelible ink03/ Abolition of postal voting for military and

police personnel 04/ Free and fair access to mass media for all parties

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03 BERSIH PEOPLE GATHERING, 10 NOVEMBER 2007 Long-term reforms needed in the election including the adherence “one-person, one-vote” principle.

The 2007 Bersih Rally was a rally held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on November 10, 2007. The aim of this walk was to campaign for electoral reform. It was precipitated by allegations of corruption and discrepancies in the Malaysian election system that heavily favor the ruling political party, Barisan Nasional, which has been in power since Malaysia achieved its independence in 1957.

Much of the publicity for the rally was distributed through online media and blogs. Initially, the organis-ers planned to have a gathering point at Dataran Merdeka square. However, it was later revealed that this was a red herring to distract the police. The locations of the four gathering points were only released the day before the protests by word of mouth, mobile phones and emails.

Consequently, the rally began with gatherings of people at four locations: Sogo department store, Masjid India, Masjid Negara and Pasar Seni. These four groups of people combined into a single group on their march towards the palace gates to hand over a memorandum to the King demanding electoral reform.

Early estimates put the number of attendees between 10,000 to 40,000. Plans called for 100,000 people to join in the rally, and there are claims that this number was indeed achieved, as the many early estimates failed to include those who simultaneously gathered at different locations and those that were barred by police from continuing the walk. The title of the rally is derived from the name of the organ-izers, BERSIH (Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections). The word “bersih” means clean in Malay.

BERSIH has chosen yellow – the colour for citizen actions worldwide as well as the colour for the press freedom movement (yellow ribbon) in Malaysia – as the theme colour for this rally. BERSIH encourages all Malaysians to indicate their support and solidarity by wearing yellow T-shirts, yellow armbands or yellow ribbons on the day of the rally.

Clean, free and fair elections are fundamental to democracy. Flawed elections frustrate the functioning of democracy, resulting in corruption and incompetence of the government of the day. The losers are none other than the people.

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03 ORGANISER’S PREPARATIONSInitially, organisers decided on 2 locations for rally participants to gather before marching on to the Istana Negara: Masjid Negara and Dataran Merdeka, two of the most significant landmarks in Kuala Lumpur. However, the day before the rallies were due, the organisers decided to change the locations to Sogo department store, Masjid India, Masjid Negara and Pasar Seni, in an attempt to divert riot police’s attention. Furthermore, a decoy of 500 people were sent to Dataran Merdeka to ‘attempt’ to get into the square.

03 GOVERNMENT PREPARATIONSIn the days leading up to the rally, the government warned Malaysians not to take part in the rally as an official permit had not been granted. Citizens were warned that anyone who turned up and participate in the rally would be immediately arrested, because the rally is deemed as illegal since the current Malaysian law bans public gatherings of more than five persons without a permit.However, it should be noted that in July last year, a police permit has released for Umno Youth to hold a protest to demand that the US and Israel end the violence in the Middle East, while US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was in Kuala Lumpur for a meeting with Asean leaders.

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POLICE’S RESPOND

THOUSANDS OF POLICE WERE STATIONED AROUND THE RALLY AREA

The hours before the rally was due to occur, thousands of police were stationed around Merdeka Square, and traffic coming into Kuala Lumpur had to pass through numerous security checkpoints, some saying checkpoints began at Pagoh, Johor and Kemaman, Terrengganu.

This created widespread traffic congestion throughout the entire Klang Valley area. Although it was claimed by the government that the actual rally was the cause of the jam, other sources contradicted this, stating that the numerous barricades and roadblocks set up by police officers were the direct source of the congestion.

Authorities also made changes to the train schedule in an attempt to make it more difficult for people to reach the rally area. Trains on the Kelana Jaya LRT line coming into the city from Kelana Jaya, which normally stop at Pasar Seni and Masjid Jamek, instead bypassed those stations, going from KL Sentral directly to Dang Wangi Station. Passengers were not given any warning of this and many did not realize they would not be able to stop at these stations until the train was already on its way to Dang Wangi or Sentral.

During the rally, the police responded by firing chemical laced water cannons and tear gas at rally participants at the Masjid Jamek and Bandaraya LRT meeting points. 245 people were arrested according to the local daily newspapers The Star, owned by MCA, one of the coalition parties of the current ruling government.

Independent sources, however, quoted only 34 people were arrested and released the night later. Purportedly, the organisers of BERSIH had ordered participants to be cooperative and the assembly was to remain peaceful at all times.

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PRIME MINISTERTPrime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi remarked that the Malaysian Royalty should not be dragged into Malaysian politics. He further alleged that the rally constituted an attempt by the Opposition to drag the Yang di-Pertuan Agong into the issue. Constitutionally, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is the Head of the State while the Prime Minister is the Head of Government. Earlier, BERSIH had informed the public that the rally is a non-partisan activity, agreed by all organisers with NGOs ,non-governmental organisations, forming the principal backbone of the movement, followed by some opposition parties.

BERSIH had earlier insisted the rally was non-partisan, however, no parties from the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition participated. In fact, there was a cry for a clampdown on the rally by delegates and hard-liners in the 2007 UMNO Annual General Meeting. Station. Passengers were not given any warning of this and many did not realize they would not be able to stop at these stations until the train was already on its way to Dang Wangi or Sentral.

During the rally, the police responded by firing chemical laced water cannons and tear gas at rally participants at the Masjid Jamek and Bandaraya LRT meeting points. 245 people were arrested according to the local daily newspapers The Star, owned by MCA, one of the coalition parties of the current ruling government.

Independent sources, however, quoted only 34 people were arrested and released the night later. Purportedly, the organisers of BERSIH had ordered participants to be cooperative and the assembly was to remain peaceful at all times.

INFORMATION MINISTERLater, Information Minister Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin criticized Al-Jazeera, denying reports that the police used excessive force in the demonstration. Zainuddin said that the police had to disperse the gathering with water cannons and tear gas since the rally was illegal. There are online allegations that certain journalists and civilians were beaten by authorities. Mainstream media confirmed arrests of people who had joined the rally. Most Malaysian media outlets generally gave the number of protesters present as approximately 4,000, although independent and international media reported a turnout ten times higher.

Zainuddin Maidin was severely criticized in various socio-political blogs for his poor command of English shown during an interview with the Qatar based news group Al-Jazeera regarding the rally.

Later the people marched towards Istana Negara to hand over the memorandum after many attempts to disperse the mob failed. Some had travelled from other states to claim their rights.

MINISTER IN THE PRIME MINISTER’S DEPARTMENTNazri Aziz, from the ruling party UMNO gave a negative response. He claimed there is democracy in Malaysia, therefore there is no necessity for a rally.

Nazri further predicted that the opposition parties “are going to lose, and they are going to lose badly in the next elections”. He also insisted that Malaysia was a democracy, thus invalidating comparisons with Myanmar because the Buddhist monks in Myanmar were protesting for the restoration of democracy in a country where the

people were oppressed.

However, Nazri did not admit that protest is allowed in democracies. BERSIH demands, with support from citi-zens for the restoration of genuine democracy. Unclean elections due to unfair electoral processes is equivalent to false or absent democracy.

Moreover, both Myanmar and Malaysia crack down on rallies and protests not permitted by the government. Hu-man Rights associations across the world regard freedom to assemble and rally as fundamental rights of a citizen in democratic nations.

ROYALS’ RESPONSEAccording to Malaysiakini, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tu-anku Mizan Zainal Abdidin in a rare press statement said neither he nor Istana Negara had directly or indirectly supported the massive rally held over the weekend in Kuala Lumpur.

According to Bernama, the King, in a statement issued via a palace official, expressed regret over the claim that he and the palace had supported Saturday’s illegal gathering.

GOVERNMENT RESPONDSES

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03 RALLY PROCEEDINGIt was reported that the rally participants played a ‘cat and mouse’ game with the riot police.

The group from Masjid Jamek were sprayed with water canons and tear gas canisters, but still managed to continue their march by joining the group congregating in front of the Sogo departmental store.

The group from Pasar Seni, led by Tian Chua attempted to pass through police barricades that blocked them from approaching the palace. This group also tried to negotiate with the police. As the negotiations were going on, this group found an alley that was not guarded by riot police, hence being able to bypass the police to get to the palace. 500 people from the Pasar Seni group joined part of the Sogo group to con-tinue their march. Meanwhile, 10,000 people from Masjid Negara had begun marching to Istana Negara. They split into two groups to increase the chance of reaching Istana Negara.

A combined group of 40,000 people, stretching half a kilometer long along the high-way were stopped by police 300 meters from the palace grounds. They were eventually joined by the group from Masjid Jamek and Sogo. Police allowed a delegation of 7 people, including PAS’s President Abdul Hadi Awang and Nasharuddin Mat Isa, DAP’s Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng and Keadilan’s Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to enter the palace.

After the memorandum was handed over to a palace secretary, most of the rally par-ticipants were seen walking back to Masjid Negara. About 20 people had been arrested earlier in the day and were held at Pudu police station. When they finally arrived at Masjid Negara, they were told to go home. Some of the rally participants went to the Pudu police station to support those who were detained.

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WE NEED AWARENESS AND SUPPORT FROMEVRYONE THINK CLEARY WHAT REALLY GOOD FOR YOU AND VOICE OUT YOUR MIND YOUR CHOICE

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04BERSIH 2.0

9 JULY 2011 The Bersih 2.0 Rally, also called the walk demonstration in Kuala Lumpur as the follow up to the Bersih Rally 2007.The rally, organised by the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections, was supported by Pakatan Rakyat, the coalition of the three largest opposition parties in Malaysia, but was deemed illegal by the govern-ment. Bersih, chaired by former president of the Bar Council Ambiga Sreenevasan, were pushing the Election Commission of Malaysia (EC) to ensure free and fair elections in Malaysia. The police vowed to stop any rallies from taking place on the planned date on the grounds that all public gatherings without police permits are illegal.

Having originally planned to march through the streets of Kuala Lumpur, Bersih decided to hold its rally at Merdeka Stadium after consultations with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Malaysia’s head of state. Supporters of Bersih claim that demands for electoral reform made during the 2007 demonstra-tion fell on deaf ears. UMNO Youth and Perkasa planned counter-rallies, dismissing Bersih’s demands for electoral reform, but Perkasa called off its counter-rally due to its inability to secure a venue and permit.

Estimates of the turnout ranged between 10,000 to over 20,000. The protestors were unable to congregate at Merdeka Stadium as many were forced to disperse by police who were heavily deployed throughout the city. Police arrested more than 1600 protestors, including Ambiga and several opposition figures.

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DEMANDS801/ Clean the electoral roll

02/ Reform postal voting03/ Use of indelible ink

04/ A minimum campaign period of 21 days05/ Free and fair access to mainstream media

06/ Strengthen public institutions07/ Stop corruption

08/ Stop dirty politics

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04 RALLY PLANBersih insisted on gathering at Merdeka Stadium, despite preventa-tive measures taken by police.

The rally’s original plan was to have protestors gather at the KL Sogo shopping center, Kuala Lumpur City Hall building, and the Kampung Baru Mosque before marching to the Istana Negara to deliver a memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. After consultations with the King, Bersih decided to hold the rally in a stadium instead.However, their request to use Merdeka Stadium was rejected by police. Bersih accused the government of reneging on a previous offer to let them rally in a stadium instead of the streets.

Abroad Simultaneous rallies in support of Bersih were planned by Malaysian citizens in more than 30 cities in New Zealand, Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Egypt, Switzerland, Sweden, Austria, France, Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, the United States and Cambodia.

AnnouncementAfter frustration at by being shut out of observing the April 2011 Sarawak election, Bersih announced in a press release on 26 May that it had decided to organise a gathering on 9 July to press for electoral reform.

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ELECTION COMISSION The Bersih’s demands were repeatedly dismissed by the Election Commission (EC), who sought to tie the organisa-tion to the opposition’s agenda. EC deputy chairman Wan Ahmad Wan Omar claimed Bersih was working with Pakatan Rakyat to “overthrow the government.” In turn, Ambiga criticised the EC’s conduct, asking them to remain independent from politics.

On 20 June, the EC extended an offer to Bersih to meet and discuss its demands, on the condition that the rally be called off. He claimed that during a previous meeting with Bersih in 2010, it had agreed that its demands were met. Bersih rejected the EC’s offer.

Speaking to reporters while observing the Thai general election in July, Abdul Aziz said the EC was considering allowing international observers to monitor the next Malaysian general election.

GOVERMENT REACTIONPrime minister Najib Razak warned that Bersih would be responsible if chaos ensued from the rally. Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein warned against the rally, fearing the chaos that might ensue. He affirmed on 7 June that the rally was “illegal,” and urged the organisers to call it off. He promised to clamp down on demonstrators if they threatened national security.

On 22 June, he confirmed that none of the three rallies would receive police permits to hold gatherings on 9 July.The government also outlawed the wearing and distribu-tion of Bersih’s yellow shirts and declared Bersih an illegal organisation under Section 5 of the Societies Act 1966. Bersih countered that as a coalition of groups it need not be registered.

Najib initially offered Bersih the opportunity of holding the rally in a stadium instead of the streets. The govern-ment later rejected Bersih’s request to hold the rally at Merdeka Stadium, and asked them to use a stadium in Selangor instead. However, the Sultan of Selangor had previously condemned demonstrations.

OPPOSITION REACTIONPAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu gave the rally his party’s full backing. Calling the event the “Walk for Democracy,” he asked for 300,000 PAS members to attend the gathering. PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang ordered all of its members (numbering one million) to join the rally.

The Leader of the Opposition, Anwar Ibrahim, will also take part in the rally. The DAP also pledged support for the rally. On 19 June, Anwar reportedly told members of his Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) that he would ask Ambiga to cancel the rally if the government met Bersih’s demands. His statement was rebuffed by Ambiga the following day.

Anwar later claimed he was misquoted. This incident was criticised by ruling coalition parties, who have argued that the rally is in fact an opposition tool to gain support.

NON - GOVERMENT ORGANISATIONSThe Bersih rally was backed by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam), Transparency Inter-national Malaysia (TI-M), and the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST). The MCCBCHST also backed Perkasa and UMNO Youth’s right to hold their rallies.

Amnesty International called on the government to end the “mass repression” of Bersih activists. Human Rights Watch urged the government to release all detained activists, return confiscated material, and permit the rally to proceed. Deputy Asia director Phil Robertson said “Governments that elected Malaysia to a second term on the UN Human Rights Council might feel duped.” The Asia-Europe Peoples’ Forum (AEPF), consisting of 120 international NGOs, condemned the Malaysian govern-ment for the crackdown on activists.

INTERNATIONAL REACTIONOn 5 July, the Office of the United Nations High Commis-sioner for Human Rights voiced concern about the restric-tion of freedom of expression in Malaysia and urged the government to release detained Bersih activists.

GOVERNMENT RESPONDSES

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POLICE’S RESPOND

THOUSANDS OF POLICE WERE STATIONED AROUND THE RALLY AREA

At least 2,136 police reports, from business operators, travel agencies, and UMNO Youth, were filed against Bersih since the rally’s announcement.On 15 June, the police announced that permits would not be issued for any rally, saying that the rallies would “disturb the peace” and “cause traffic chaos.” Bersih remained defiant despite not receiving the permit, and promised to cooperate with police during the gathering.

Police also investigated allegations that Ambiga received funds from foreign NGOs “to cause chaos in Malaysia.” Police recorded statements from Ambiga, Ibrahim, and opposition politicians ahead of the rally. On 1 July, the police ceased discussions with Bersih, Perkasa and UMNO Youth and promised to prevent any street rallies from taking place.

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04 PRE-RALLY ARRESTS AND RAIDSMore than 150 people were arrested before 9 July for Bersih-related activities, including distributing leaflets. Most were released after several hours of questioning.30 members of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) were arrested in Penang on 26 June on suspicion of spreading communism and conspiring to overthrow the government. Six members, including MP Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj, remain held under the Emergency Ordinance 1969, which allows indefinite detention without trial.

Police also raided Bersih’s office in Petaling Jaya on 30 June.One day before the planned rally, police released a list of 91 individuals, including Ambiga, Khairy and Ibrahim, barred from enter-ing Kuala Lumpur’s central business district on 9 July.

04LOCKDOWNPolice began imposing roadblocks in the Klang Valley on Wednesday, 6 July, which led to massive traffic congestion and complaints from the public. They described it as a “preventive” move to stop undesirable elements from “smuggling” weapons into Kuala Lumpur.

On 8 July, police sealed off Merdeka Square and rolled in water cannon and riot police trucks. At midnight on 9 July, major roads in the city was shut and public transportation suspended.

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WE NEED TO INSISTS OUR

POINT OF VIEW WE DO NOT TOLERATE

AND WE WORK OUT THIS TOGETHER AGAINST THE DIRTY POLITICF

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05BERSIH 3.0

28 April 2012The Bersih 3.0 rally or April 28, also called the Sit In rally or Duduk Bantah in Malay was a demonstration in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.The rally, organised by the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih), was supported by Pakatan Rakyat, the coalition of the three largest opposition parties in Malaysia. Following the last rally in 2011, the government of Malaysia organised a Public Select Committee (PSC) to look into electoral reforms in Malaysia, which released their proposals in April, 2012.

Seven of the eight demands by the Bersih have been included in the 22 recommendations submitted by the PSC. PSC Committee member P. Kamalanathan said only one demand by Bersih, on a minimum 21 days campaign period, was not included because it was not suitable to be implemented in Sabah and Sarawak. However, the matter was still being considered, where the current campaign period of seven days had been extended to 10 days.

Bersih claimed that PSC proposals were half-hearted and accused the Election Commission of Malaysia (EC) of being insincere in introducing electoral reforms. Bersih has stated that they would call off the rally if the Malaysian government gave a guarantee that electoral reforms take place before the next Malaysian general elections.

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05 BERSIH 3.0Bersih 3.0 has designed several version of poster for Bersih Rally 3.0.

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REFERENCES

1/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Bersih_rally

2/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bersih_3.0_rally

3/ http://1malaysia1love.blogspot.com/2011/07/bersih-yellow-is-global.html

4/ http://www.nowpublic.com/world/bersih-3-0-singapore-bersih-3-0-rally-kuala-lumpur-april-28

5/ http://www.bersih.org/?p=618#more-6188

6/ http://malaysianindian1.blogspot.com/2011/06/bersih-opposes-to-violence-aim-is-noble.html

7/ http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/196320

8/ http://www.meshio.com/img/2010/bersih3-another-crying-game-06.jpg

9/ http://www.bersih.org/?p=335