Singkatan;IKRAR (Ikatan Kebajikan Rakyat)
"REFORMIS BUKAN HANYA GELARAN ATAU PEJUANG YANG BERJUANG KERANA MENGHARAPKANNYA!"
1 OGOS
Sebenarnya sejak semalam mata tak boleh lelap macam mahu nikah baru pula. Mungkin ada nikmat tersendiri bila nostalgia 10 tahun lalu di Jalan Tuanku Abd Rahman, Pertama KOmpleks, Lorong Pasar Malam Masjid India, Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Masjid Negara dan Masjid Jamek tercuit dalam ingatan. Cuma kali ini polisnya agak kurang sabar, apakah kerana Hishamuddin cool tapi ganas atau Musa Hasan yang bakal berhenti tidak lama lagi.? Hati kecil saya berkata lebih kepada Hishamuddin dan Najib yang seantero dunia tahu Najib lebih ganas dari Hishamuddin. Ada setengah teman di jalan komen, tak sangka bapuk (macam banci) boleh jadi ganas gila.
Saya ingin syer dengan teman-teman bukan momennya kerana Harakah dan Malaysia kini telah memberi detail soal itu cuma saya lebih melihat kepada beberapa aspek:
1. BN dan UMNO sepertinya akan bertaruh nyawa untuk mempertahankannya. Soal ISA halal atau haram seperti permintaan Dr Asri bagi UMNO bukan hal utama. Yang lebih penting bagaimana ISA boleh dikuda demi kekuasaan ala penjajah dulu. Mereka tidak ingin erti merdeka direalisasi dalam kehidupan rakyat secara utuh sekalipun dibibir mereka slogan satu Malaysia menjadi zikir. Satu Malaysia adalah hak mereka (BN dan UMNO) selain dari mereka perlu ditolak dengan apa cara sekalipun termasuk menggunakan ISA. Inilah persepsi merdeka bagi pemimpin UMNO dan BN. Lalu apa yang dapat kita harapkan dari perhimpunan tadi?
2. Jelas sekali rakyat dari berbagai kaum seluruh Malaysia turun ke jalan menunjukkan sikap mereka dan kebencian mereka terhadap ISA. Risiko kepada UMNO BN amat besar sebenarnya di PRU 13 jika ISA masih dikekalkan dan rakyat telah dengan berani menolaknya. Termasuk para pedagang Pasar Malam sebelum ini tidak ambil pusing soal akta zalim ini. Tambahan pula di sore tadi kedai mereka dan barang jualan mereka disemprot dengan air asid, ditembak dengan gas pemedih mata dan bahan jualan terpaksa dibuang ke parit. Terdengar suara mereka yang mengatakan bahawa cukuplah kali ini sahaja BN UMNO memerintah kerana terbukti depan mata bahawa mereka dengan biadap memberi arahan kepada pihak polis sehingga mengganggu
kawasan awam dan tempat usaha. Saya melihat acap kali bagaimana sopannya polisi Indonesia berdepan dengan para demonstrans sehingga ada jalan keluarnya. Beda dengan polisi Malaysia, mereka bongkak, angkuh dan kurang perihatin kepada kemanusiaan. Apakah dalam silibus training tidak ada unsur ini atau sudah dirubah oleh Hishamuddin?
Foto: Salah seorang peniaga yang bekas air mata kucingnya bocor ditembak polis..Tidak ada alasan jika polis guna otak yang waras. Ini kawasan perniagaan awam. Demontrans terpaksa lari ke kawasan ini untuk selamatkan diri dari gas dan belantan. Bodohlah namnaya jika serahkan diri dibantai..Lebih bodoh lagi jika ada menteri yang bagi alasan demonstrans ganggu peniaga? Tidak ada peniaga yang setuju dengan tindakan polis dan keganasan Hishamuddin kecuali peniaga yang berkeris tak bersarung di situ.. Saya berada di situ dan saya ambil foto selepas kejadian itu dan menyaksikan peniaga tersebut terpaksa buang air mata kucingnya ke longkang di hadapan pegawai polis..
Foto: Lebih jelas berlubang
3. Di sudut yang lain saya rasa kesian melihat teman-teman polisi ini terutama FRU yang asyik tengking sahaja. Petang tadi saya alami sendiri ketika saya mahu pulang dihalang oleh FRU dan mengherdik 2 ke 3 orang kepada saya. Dalam hati saya mereka ni tersilap orang mungkin. Sekuat mana mereka menengking saya dapat kawal dan memberi amaran di depan muka mereka seraya diperhatikan oleh FRU yang lain. Saya katakan begini " Jangan kurang ajar ok?" Sambil tangan saya menunjuk ke arah muka mereka. Mereka mahu balas lagi dengan suara yang tidak munasabah.." Kamu tidak tahu guna bahasa yang baik ke?".."Saya akan ikut arahan kamu jika kamu rendahkan suara kamu"..Ternyata mereka ni manusia dan makan nasi juga maka suara yang keras bertukar lunak. "Ha tahu pun.." Saya berundur ke arah KOmpleks Pertama..Saya faham mereka letih atau capek tetapi mereka mungkin tidak diajar untuk melihat seseorang. Ada yang tua, perempuan, anak-anak, remaja dan sebagainya wajar diiktiraf keberadaannya. Jangan tengking semua macam halau kucing atau anjing, Dan ketika saya tunjuk ke muka mereka ada rasa kesian apabila mereka tunduk malu.
4. Saya bersama grup dari Masjid Jame'. Selepas solat kami bergerak ke pintu tetapi dari situ sudah dihalang oleh polis dan terus tembak. Apakah gerun kerana para demonstran bertakbir sehingga menaikkan bulu ruma dan suasana seperti mereka tidak mampu untuk mengawalnya sehingga setelah ditembak para demonstran kelam kabut mencari udara, garam dan air. Saya sendiri sejak semalam memang batuk, maka terpaksa ambil nafas panjang beberapa kali kerana dada sudah sesak tidak dapat bernafas. Alhamdulillah tidak jatuh atau tumbang. Kelihatan juga anak-anak kecil dikendong oleh ayah ibunya tercungap-cungap bertarung nyawa untuk bernafas. ALhamdulillah anak-anak tersebut selamat setelah diberi minum air mineral. Di sini saya dapat melihat bagaimana setiakawan dapat direalisasikan. Saling tolong dan membantu antara satu sama lain bagikan saudara kandung sukar untuk diungkapkan. Yang China tolong Melayu, Yang Melayu tolong India, Yang berjanggut saling memerhatikan keselamatan saudaranya yang tidak berjanggut dan begitu juga yang bertudung saling bantu. Indah sekali dan rasanya ada hikmah dari perhimpunan seperti ini buat generasi akan datang kerana 10 tahun lalu dengan semangat sama akhirnya pada tahun 2008 BN UMNO hampir-hampir tumbang. Hal sekecil ini perlu diamalkan secara bertahap dan bukan mustahil bila berdepan dengan hal yang besar. Inilah latihan dan wajib dipupuk tanpa mengira siapa kita. Kita adalah bersaudara dalam kontaks yang amat luas dan dalam menentang ISA kita menjadi lebih kuat dalam persaudaraan menentang kezaliman ini.
5. Ada sesuatu yang pihak polis tidak faham ialah menghormati sesuatu moment. Setelah berdoa panjang di atas jalan di belakang Datran Merdeka berdepan Bukit Aman, Dr. Mujahid mengimamkan solat hajat. Kemudian datanglah FRU dan langsung menembak ke arah kami masa itu. Sekali lagi saya dan teman-teman bertarung nyawa mencari udara segar, garam dan air. Ada beberapa orang yang rebah dan dibawa ke rumah sakit. Saya tidak faham, tindakan begini didorong oleh apa? Dan siapa yang mengarahkannya sampai tidak peduli dan hormat orang solat? Atau mereka memang tidak pernah solat ketika melalui training dahulu? Ini persoalan amat dasar kerana biasanya manusia yang punya hati akan berhenti sebentar menghormati seseorang yang sedang solat. Inilah realiti kejahilan polis kita dan mungkin juga kejahilan Menteri-menteri kita. Mungkin JAKIm perlu cek para menteri kita apakah mereka ini tahu mandi wajib dan tahu solat. Ya ada sebahgian besar anak pemimpin UMNO terdahulu tak pernah hantar anak mereka belajar di sekolah agama rakyat. Rasanya sama juga dengan kebanykan anak-anak para raja Melayu. Celik mata aje terus ke UK atau kemana saja asal bukan di Malaysia. Balik ke Malaysia cakap Melayu slang orang putih. Jadi apa yang mereka tahu? Ini tugas berat para mufti kita dan ulama yang berdekatan dengan pemerintah!!
Saya balik sekitar jam 6 petang setelah dikejar beberapa kali di kawasan pasar malam. Bagi saya perhimpunan ini amat bermakna sekali dan sebagai "recharge" semula segala otot-otot yang ada. Ya hakikatnya, sekarang sudah tidak selincah dulu dan memang perlu lebih berhati-hati jika ada gas, memang amat sukar untuk bernafas dan mungkin juga pengsan atau maut. Jadi kepada pihak polis, tolong buat analisa lebih terperinci soal implikasi gas ini terutama kepada mereka yang batuk dan asma. Bukan mustahil jika tidak diberi pertolongan segera dari segi pernafasan maka kita bisa pengsan atau jika ada masalah komplikasi paru-paru seseorang boleh mati. Terutama Hishamuddin, jangan kerana sekadar nak tunjuk hebat di mata Najib dan kabinet, ada rakyat yang mati gara-gara kejahilan ini. Jangan jadikan polis sebagai alat teror terhadap rakyat!!! Ingat suatu ketika nanti..anak dan cucu kamu juga akan menemplak atas perbuatan kamu pada 1 Ogos 2009 ini. JIka mereka juga akan menjadi mangsa ISA nanti..
Info dari Harakahdaily..
Himpunan berjaya, GMI akan hantar Memo 10 Deklarasi ISA kepada Agong secepat mungkin
| Tarmizi Mohd Jam | Foto Wan Zahari Wan Salleh
Sat | Aug 01, 09 | 4:46:31 pm MYT | |||||||||||||||||||
| KUALA LUMPUR, 1 Ogos - Sidang media khas yang diketuai Ketua Pembangkang, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim sebentar tadi antara lain memutuskan akan menghantar Memorandum 10 Dekralasi ISA kepada Yang Dipetuan Agong dalam masa terdekat.  Sidang media turut dihadiri Lim Kit Siang; Dato Mustapha Ali, Dato' Mahfuz Omar, Salahuddin Ayub, Pengerusi GMI, Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh serta beberapa pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat yang lain. Demikian lapor wartawan Harakah, NYZA AYOB dari Pejabat Agung PAS. Oleh kerana sekatan dan kekangan polis yanga agak ketat, menyebabkan tiada siapa dari pimpinan GMI dan Pakatan Rakyat yang bolos ke Istana Negara. Sebaliknya semua kumpulan penyokong berpecah dan akhirnya menuju ke Pejabat Agung PAS di Jalan Raja Laut. Antara tuntutan 10 Deklarasi ISA itu ialah mahu kerajaan melaksanakan siasatan awam dan menyiasat semua kes penyiksaan, penganiayaan, kezaliman dan tidak berperikemanusiaan ISA selama ini. Anwar menyifatkan Himpunan MANSUH ISA berjaya mencapai sasaran apabila lebih 100,000 penyokong Anti-ISA berkumpul di merata tempat sekitar Kuala Lumpur setelah di halang secara tegar oleh pihak polis. Dianggar lebih 200 orang ditahan sebelum dan semasa perarakan. Antara ahli parlimen Pakatan Rakyat yang ditahan termasuklah Dr. Mujahid Yusuf Rawa dan Sivarasa Rasiah. Tengahari tadi pula, Norlaila Osman, Narshitah Mohd Nor dan Aiman Athirah Al-Jundi juga turut ditahan. Kesemua mereka yang ditahan dipercayai telah di bawa ke IPD Cheras. Para peguam kini sedang berusaha untuk menyelesai dan membebaskan ke semua tahanan tersebut. - tmj_ HR9808: Sebagai melahirkan rasa simpati terhadap Unit Amal sila sumbangkan sesuatu kepada mereka..!! Sumbangan diperlukan untuk bantu Unit Amal yang cedera
Hr9808: Info dari media BN UMNo yang tidak realistik dan menabur fitnah. Apapun yang kamu laporkan rakyat umunya tahu yang media kamu sudah tidak relevan. Tipu dan menjilat. Kerajaan tidak tunduk desakan demonstrasi jalananNILAI 1 Ogos - Kerajaan tidak akan tunduk dengan desakan melalui demonstrasi jalanan kerana ia dilakukan hanya untuk tujuan politik dan kepentingan peribadi. Menteri Dalam Negeri, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein berkata, ini dapat dilihat melalui laungan yang dibuat ketika demonstrasi di ibu negara hari ini yang langsung tidak ada kaitan dengan Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA). ''Saya tidak nampak tujuan mereka berhimpun untuk menghapuskan atau menyokong ISA. Mungkin ada kumpulan tertentu yang menggunakan platform ini untuk tujuan dan matlamat lain. ''Selepas kita kaji dan teliti sebenarnya, apa yang mereka laungkan itu tidak ada langsung kena-mengena dengan ISA," katanya kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan Mesyuarat Perwakilan UMNO Bahagian Rasah di Nilai Spring Resort Hotel di sini hari ini. Hr9808: KENYATAAN KATUN DARI HISHAMUDDIN..Yang bagi info ni memang menjilat gila.(jilat tu = ampu bodoh).
Hishammuddin berkata, kerajaan tidak akan tunduk dengan sebarang desakan melalui demonstrasi itu kerana ia hanya bermotifkan politik semata-mata. ''Saya rasa rakyat boleh menilai dengan apa yang berlaku hari ini. Saya difahamkan hanya sekitar 6,000 orang yang berhimpun dalam Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI) di Kuala Lumpur," jelas beliau. HR9808: Tidak tunduk ya..terimalah nanti risikonya dalam PRU 13!!..
Tegasnya, kerajaan sentiasa konsisten dalam menangani isu ISA kerana ada perkara yang tidak boleh dikompromi melalui demonstrasi jalanan khususnya berkaitan Perlembagaan, undang-undang negara dan institusi yang sedia ada untuk menjamin keselamatan negara. Beliau menegaskan, memang kementeriannya sedang mengkaji akta berkenaan dan kerangkanya pun sudah digubal. ''Yang penting ia hendaklah selari dengan pucuk kepimpinan negara. Kita perlu berbincang dengan Majlis Peguam dan Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia (Suhakam) termasuklah mereka yang mempunyai kepentingan dalam perkara ini. ''Biarlah kita duduk dalam suasana yang kondusif kerana kita hendak membincangkan satu perkara yang penting berkaitan ISA. Bagaimana kita hendak berbincang kalau asyik terpekik dan menjerit di jalanan. Itu bukan perbincangan yang kondusif. Ini akta yang penting," tegas beliau. HR9808: Masalahnya rakyat sudah hilang keyakinan kepada BN UMNO dalam hal ISA. Rakyat tahu hanya dengan PRU 13 sahaja jawapannya. Tumbangkan kerajaan BN ini melalui jalan hak suara rakyat.
Sehubungan itu, Hishammuddin menjelaskan, adalah menjadi harapan beliau agar semakan dan pindaan berhubung akta berkenaan dapat dibentangkan pada sesi Parlimen akan datang, bagaimanapun ia bergantung dengan persetujuan yang dicapai oleh mereka yang sama-sama duduk untuk menggubalnya. Mengulas demonstrasi yang dilakukan hari ini serta ditunjangi pembangkang, Hishammuddin menegaskan, memang sudah ada penahanan yang dilakukan ke atas individu yang ingkar dengan arahan pihak berkuasa supaya tidak melakukan perhimpunan haram. ''Kita ambil tindakan kepada mereka yang menyalahi undang-undang. Kita lakukan tanpa memilih sesiapa. Mereka kenalah berhadapan dengan proses mahkamah," katanya. HR9808: Salah apanya? Hak bersuara dan berhimpun ada dalam Perlembagaan cuma kamu semua hipokrit dan perbodohkan rakyat.
Mengenai tindakan pihak tertentu yang semakin berani mencabar undang-undang negara walaupun sudah diberi amaran agar tidak melakukan perhimpunan haram dan demonstrasi, Hishammuddin menegaskan, kerajaan mempunyai banyak peruntukan undang-undang untuk dikenakan ke atas mereka yang tidak bertanggungjawab. Ditanya sama ada ISA wajar digantikan dengan istilah baru, beliau berkata, bukan nama yang menjadi persoalan tetapi pengisian dalam akta berkenaan yang sedang dikaji. ''Ketika ini pun di negara Barat, akta yang sama telah pun diperkenalkan dan diguna pakai seperti akta anti pengganas yang bertujuan memastikan keselamatan negara mereka terjamin. Jadi di sebalik demonstrasi ini ada hikmahnya, kita dapat melihat pihak tertentu sengaja mengambil kesempatan dalam agenda mereka," jelas beliau. HR9808: Barat izinkan demo dan bebas bersuara. Kenyataan ini tidak relevan langsung dengan suasana di Malaysia. Di Indonesia sahaja rakyatnya boleh demo dan bersuara. Jadi Malaysia merujuk siapa dalam hal ini? Ya..dari penjajah dan masih mahu dikekalkan kerana otak serta budi pemimpin Melayu UMNO yang "copy paste pemikiran penjajah". Rakyat menolak ISA kerana zalim bukan sahaja kepada pembangkang bahkan kepada ahli UMNO juga. Tolong fikirkan semasak-masaknya apa akan jadi jika kamu yang kena ISA? Jangan fikir sekarang tetapi akan datang? Mustahil pada fikiran kamu kerana kamu masih memerintah. Bagaimana sebaliknya? Sekalipun komitmen pembangkang akan hilangkan ISA ini dari kamus akta di Malaysia. Tapi kesalahan yang sedang menanti para pemerintah hari ini ialah kesalahan jenayah rasuah dll terlalu banyak maka..bukan ISA sahaja yang boleh megheret kamu ke penjara tetapi terlalu banyak yang lain...Cuma kamu akan ditangkap sesuai prosidur dan dibicarakan sehingga terbukti bersalah di mahkamah. Inilah kehendak rakyat secara umum bukan macam ISA.!!
Info dari media International...
Local police said close to 600 people, including women and young people under 18, were arrested Saturday outside the national mosque and shopping mall. Authorities set up roadblocks and introduced other security measures to curb rallies organized by supporters and opponents of the country's Internal Security Act. Malaysian authorities banned both demonstrations, saying they would undermine public peace. Under the law, people considered national security threats can be detained for long periods of time without trials. Prime Minister Najib Razak urged demonstrators to refrain from rallying, saying the law will be reviewed. In his first act after taking office in May, the prime minister freed 13 people who had been detained under the security act. But a number of people, most of them suspected of links to terrorist groups such as Jemaah Islamiyah, are still detained under the act. Critics say the law is often used to detain outspoken government opponents. They have also condemned the secrecy and alleged torture linked to the use of the law. But some government officials say it is necessary for national security. Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters. Malaysian Protesters Clash With Riot PoliceBy JAMES HOOKWAY and CELINE FERNANDEZKUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysian riot police fired tear gas and water cannons in clashes with several thousand antigovernment demonstrators who gathered in Kuala Lumpur Saturday to protest a long-standing law allowing detention without trial, raising the stakes in a long-running struggle for political power in the resource-rich but divided country. The law, known as the Internal Security Act, enables Malaysian authorities to detain indefinitely persons they consider to be security risks. In the past, al Qaeda-linked terrorists have been held under the provision. But opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and human rights activists say the law is also being used to stifle dissent in Malaysia, where the National Front coalition has ruled the country without interruption since independence from Britain in 1957. AFP/Getty Images Malaysian anti-riot police fire tear gas shells to disperse demonstrators in Kuala Lumpur on August 1, 2009.  Last year, the law was used to detain a blogger, a journalist and members of a Hindu rights activist group. In a telephone interview on Sunday, Mr. Anwar said the law represents a "powerful threat to anybody criticizing the government." As many as 10,000 protesters converged in the center of Malaysia's main city just after 2 pm on Saturday, and prepared to march toward the national palace, where they intended to hand in a petition to the country's constitutional monarch to appeal the security law. Chants of "Reformasi" -- the Malaysian term for political reform -- echoed around the narrow streets in downtown Kuala Lumpur as police fired tear gas and chemical-laced water to break up the protesters before the march could begin. Police used batons to charge into groups of demonstrators, scuffling with many of them, before they could deliver the petition. Analysts said the showdown could buoy Mr. Anwar's opposition alliance in its continuing effort to win enough support to form a new government. Some protesters took refuge in a nearby department store to evade arrest, while other businesses pulled down their shutters as concerns about violence grew. Witnesses saw police dragging detainees into waiting vans, sometimes kicking and screaming. Police arrested 310 protesters because the rally hadn't been granted a permit, Inspector General of Police Musa Haji Hassan said in a statement Saturday. "Because of their defiance, police were left not no choice but to disperse them by spraying tear gas and throwing water at the demonstrators," Mr. Musa said. The number of detainees was later revised upward to 438 persons. Mr. Anwar, the opposition leader, said the police response to the demonstration indicated that government is trying to batten down the hatches against a growing wave of distrust in the way Malaysia's political leaders use old colonial laws such as the Internal Security Act. "The way the police acted reflects the government's fear. Even people who were dispersing after the protest was broken up were fired on with tear gas," said Mr. Anwar, who attended the rally. Prime Minister Najib Razak, meanwhile, said the protesters had been warned not to assemble, state media reported, and said he had received many complaints about traffic disruptions in the area. He said he would leave it to the police to determine what to do with the people detained during the protest, and he has previously pledged to consider amending the Internal Security Act. Other government officials and political activists have said the internal-security law is needed to combat terrorism and maintain social order in this racially-diverse nation of 27 million people, which is home to large ethnic-Chinese and Indian minorities as well as the majority Muslim Malay population. Political analysts said the aggressive manner in which Saturday's protests were broken up could give Mr. Anwar and his fragile opposition alliance a boost at a time when Mr. Najib has been winning a greater degree of public approval. The prime minister's approval rating in a recent opinion poll climbed to 65% in July from 45% in May. After a series of heavy electoral reverses over the past year, the ruling National Front saw its margin of loss narrow in the most recent provincial election last month. James Chin, a political science professor at the Malaysian campus of Australia's Monash University, said that despite those gains, the rally was intended to "send a strong signal to the rest of the world that nothing has changed in Malaysia" in terms of human rights in recent years. Indeed, the political tension pervading the country seems in many ways to be a retread of what happened a decade ago, when Mr. Anwar, then a deputy prime minister, was fired from the government for questioning its economic policies and then convicted for allegedly sodomizing two male aides -- a crime in this mostly Muslim country. Last year, with the opposition making its largest-ever election gains, Mr. Anwar was again charged with sodomizing a man who once worked in his office. Mr. Anwar says he is innocent in both cases, saying the charges were fabricated to destroy his political career. Mr. Anwar's earlier conviction was quashed after a successful appeal in 2004, enabling the 62-year-old grandfather to return to politics. Initial trial proceedings in the latest case began in July and are likely to drag on for several months. "There's no question of getting a fair trial," Mr. Anwar said Sunday. Mr. Najib, the prime minister, has denied playing any role in instigating the legal case against Mr. Anwar. Write to Celine Fernandez at Celine.Fernandez@wsj.com and James Hookway at james.hookway@wsj.com Protest at Malaysia security lawProtest at Malaysia security law Thousands of people have demonstrated in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, against a controversial, decades-old law allowing detention without trial. Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the protesters as they blocked several main roads for hours. More than 200 arrests were made during the unauthorised march, attended by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. Prime Minister Najib Razak said he had already agreed to review the controversial Internal Security Act. The protest started after prayers finished at the national mosque, when a crowd of about 1,000 marched along one of the city's main streets. A second crowd of several thousand came from the opposite direction. Petition blocked The protesters had planned to march to the national palace to submit a petition to the king denouncing the security law. Reports said there were up to 15,000 demonstrators facing 5,000 police. Mr Anwar, who in the past has been imprisoned under the law, told the rally: "We gather today to fight a cruel law under a cruel administration." Such a public gathering is rare in Malaysia where permits are needed for meetings involving four or more people, reports the BBC's Robin Brant in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia has been through a year of political turbulence as liberals and Islamists try to wrest power from the long-ruling UMNO Malay nationalist party.
Riot police fire tear gas at protesters in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Riot police charged demonstrators with batons and fired tear gas Saturday to disperse thousands of people marching in Malaysia's largest city to protest a law that allows indefinite detention without trial. People began massing at Kuala Lumpur's main mosque, a shopping mall and a train station Saturday morning in defiance of government warnings that police would crack down on demonstrators, who are pushing leaders to scrap the Internal Security Act, which allows the imprisonment of people regarded as security threats. Police said many thousands had taken to the streets, with some news websites putting the count as high as 20,000. Police fired tear gas and chemical-laced water to disperse the crowds shortly after they began marching toward the national palace. The protesters — who chanted "Reformasi," the opposition's slogan for political change — had planned to submit a petition to the country's king, the constitutional monarch, to denounce the security act. Witnesses said police wielding batons charged the protesters and scuffled with them. Many people ran into alleys and shops nearby to avoid being arrested. "The police are really brutal," opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim told reporters at the protest. "This clearly shows (the government's) intolerance to any dissent. ... We gather here today to fight a cruel law." Before the march started, Kuala Lumpur Police Chief Muhammad Sabtu Osman said 150 people — identified as protesters because they were wearing opposition T-shirts and headbands — had been detained to prevent them from taking part. Opposition activists estimated at least 200 people were detained by the time the protest ended. Government authorities had warned they would not allow the protest, saying it could undermine public peace. Authorities set up roadblocks across Kuala Lumpur to deter the demonstrators from trying to reach the city center, sparking massive traffic crawls. Hundreds of riot police backed by trucks mounted with water cannons stood outside train station and shopping mall where the demonstrators had arranged to gather. Restaurants and stores were shuttered on several streets ahead of the rally — the biggest street protest in Kuala Lumpur since a November 2007 when tens of thousands of minority ethnic Indians demanded racial equality. A police official at the scene, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make public statements, said authorities could only estimate that there were "many thousands of protesters." The Star newspaper and Malaysiakini news website reported a total of 20,000 protesters in three different areas. Prime Minister Najib Razak has promised to consider amending the security act, though government officials have repeatedly said it is necessary to safeguard national security, and on Friday he urged people not to join the protest. Nazri Aziz, the Cabinet minister in charge of legal affairs, said Saturday that as long as the National Front ruling coalition "is leading the government, the ISA will not be abolished," The Star reported on its website. Human rights groups estimate at least 17 people are being held under the act, mainly for alleged links to militants and document forgery. Activists have long decried the decades-old act, instituted during the British colonial era, saying it is sometimes used to jail government critics and dampen dissent. Human rights activists have held numerous smaller rallies over the years to protest the security act, but Saturday's protest received a boost after opposition parties urged their supporters to come out in force. Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.s Malaysian police use tear gas at mass protest 
Map KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannons, and made hundreds of arrests Saturday to disperse more than 15,000 people demonstrating against laws that allow for detention without trial. In chaotic scenes in downtown Kuala Lumpur, some 5,000 police including riot squads hauled away at least 288 protesters among huge crowds that gathered at rallying points including two mosques and a shopping complex. As pockets of protests held out towards dusk, deputy police chief Ismail Omar said that even more could be taken into custody. "A total of 288 people have been arrested so far. There may be a few more after this, we don't know... The assembly was illegal," he told AFP. "We just wanted to disperse them, so we used water cannon and tear gas to do that," he added, insisting the police action was not heavy-handed. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who took part in the demonstration and said he was also tear-gassed, denounced the police action as "unwarranted" and said it reflected badly on new prime minister Najib Razak. "Najib has shattered his nice-guy image by allowing the police to act so brutally," he told a hastily arranged press conference. Najib criticised the protest plans Friday, saying it was unnecessary because he had already agreed to review the Internal Security Act (ISA) which allows for detention without trial. "He should have spoken to the opposition leaders to ask them to call off the gathering if he was serious about carrying out the reforms that he has promised," Anwar said. Demonstrators played a cat-and-mouse game with police who attempted to prevent them from massing at the rallying points, darting into side streets before regrouping and marching down main thoroughfares. At least 75 rounds of tear gas were fired and water cannons were unleashed at the Sogo shopping complex where the main crowd of some 10,000 people had gathered, intending to march on the royal palace. The sustained police offensive sent the huge crowd scattering, with many coughing and choking from the effects of the tear gas. Organisers said they wanted to present a 10-point memo to the king including demands for the abolition of the ISA, the closure of a camp where detainees are held, and an inquiry into all deaths in police custody. At the national mosque, where an AFP reporter saw at least 50 detained, opposition legislator Siti Mariah Mahmud, from the Islamic party PAS, criticised the arrests of protesters as they attempted to enter the mosque. "This is not reasonable. It's prayer time and this action is a breach of our religious freedom and duty," she said. When prayers were completed, those who had managed to enter the mosque streamed out, joining a crowd of at least 5,000 which began marching before also being confronted by tear gas and water cannons. There was traffic chaos in Kuala Lumpur, as trains halted stops at affected stations and police roadblocks caused snarls that left many shoppers stuck in the city. The legislation, a hangover from colonial days, has been used against government opponents as well as suspected Islamist terrorists. "We are here to fight for the ISA to be abolished," said Yati Ali, 45, one of some 100 women and children standing in a group outside the Sogo complex. "We don't fear arrest. ISA is a cruel act, we are fighting for justice," she said. Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved.
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