Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s popularity took a hit following a
harsh crackdown on demonstrators at July’s 2011 Bersih rally. Looking
to salvage his image as a reformer, Najib immediately set up a
Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to look into the issue of electoral
reform.
But if he was hoping this move alone would appease critics and aid his
political brand, he appears to have been gravely mistaken: the bar has
since been raised, and to meet it, Najib must up the reformist ante and
learn to sell policies more effectively to an increasingly skeptical
electorate.
Even journalists not spared
Saturday, April 28 2012, saw the Malaysian Bersih movement hold its
third and biggest rally yet for electoral reform: some estimates have
the number of attendees at 300,000 for the Kuala Lumpur event. Bersih
“solidarity rallies” also took place in eighty-five other locations
across the world, adding to the momentum already mustered from the two
previous rallies.
But what had for several hours been a peaceful protest quickly took a
violent turn when a small group of protesters appeared to breach the
barbed wire and barricades set up by police to keep the protestors out
of Kuala Lumpur’s iconic Independence Square (Dataran Merdeka).
Tear gas and water cannons were fired at demonstrators. South Australian
Senator Nick Xenophon, who was in the country as an international
observer, was one of those tear gassed. Several journalists reported
having their equipment destroyed as they tried to film some of the chaos
and violence, with one Al-Jazeera correspondent having to file a report
using Skype.
But images of groups of policemen attacking demonstrators have found
their way onto social networking sites, where they have been readily
shared amongst Malaysian users. Some 512 people were arrested by the
close of the day.
Gloves came off quickly in the ensuing blame game, with rally organisers
insisting the violence only started after the tear gas was used.
Politicians from the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which has ruled
Malaysia for over five decades, lined up to point the finger at Bersih
and demonstrators.
"Old guard" is increasingly being hated by the people
The Minister for Home Affairs, Hishammuddin Hussein, retweeted one tweet
likening some of the participants to “thugs”, and said the police had
behaved professionally.
Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin likened the situation to a
“riot”, and Barisan Nasional (BN) and United Malays National
Organisation (UMNO) youth leader Khairy Jamaluddin blamed the violence
on the presence of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.
But many Malaysians are wearing none of it, especially with audio visual
evidence in cyberspace to the contrary, and since the international
observers invited by Anwar Ibrahim to observe the rally have also
rejected the charges.
Cynicism towards the “old guard” is increasing, especially amongst young
urban voters who have grown impatient at the mainstream media bias and
widespread marginalisation they have known all their lives.
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