So Are Street Demonstrations Our Culture Now? Answer Us, Badawi!
March 15, 2008
Back to the past for some history lessons…
9th November 2007 (day before Bersih rally)
The people should reject street demonstrations and effect any change through polls, said Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
The Prime Minister reiterated that today’s planned demonstration by the non-governmental organisation Bersih was illegal as it did not have a police permit.
Calling the organisers stubborn, he said: “I am disappointed. Are they trying to challenge the Government and leadership? But what they are actually challenging and casting aside is the law.
“People want the country to always be stable and peaceful and that is what they (Bersih) are challenging, not me.
“Saya pantang dicabar (I don’t take to being challenged),” he said yesterday in his winding-up speech.
The Umno president said street demonstration was not the Malaysian way.“Illegal demonstrations disrupt the country’s economy as the police will act on the demonstrators and this will result in chaos. This will cause people to be angry and hate the police,” he said.
11th November 2007 (day after Bersih rally)
In Kuala Lumpur, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said demonstrations achieved nothing but tore down the spirit of national unity that past leaders had toiled so hard to build.
At the Culture, Arts and Heritage Ministry’s National Deepavali open house in Brickfields yesterday, Najib said public protests were not part of Malaysian culture.
“If the opposition think they have accomplished much by gathering about 10,000 people for their demonstration, I want them to know that Barisan Nasional can marshal more than that number easily. But what’s the point?” he said.
Unless You’re UMNO?
Excerpts from the Malaysiakini article:
Some 1,000 Umno members and supporters staged a one-hour protest outside the Penang state government office in Komtar this afternoon over the New Economic Policy controversy.
The crowd - which gathered there after Friday prayers around 2.30pm - chanted slogans such as ‘Don’t sideline the Malays’ and ‘Don’t abolish NEP’.
The demonstration, led by Penang Umno secretary Azhar Ibrahim, to protest Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s declaration that the new DAP-led state government would do away with NEP.
…
The demonstrators carried banners in Bahasa Malaysia with slogans such as “Jangan Pinggirkan Orang Melayu” (Don’t Marginalise the Malays), “Jangan Hapuskan Hak Orang Melayu” (Don’t Abolish Malay Rights) and “Jangan Hapuskan Dasar Ekonomi Baru” (Don’t Abolish the New Economic Policy).
They march along Jalan Ria service road that leads to Penang’s tallest building Komtar, where the Chief Minister’s office is located, shouting anti-government slogans and chanting “Allahu Akbar” and “Hidup Melayu”.
When the demonstrators approached Komtar, they were told by George Town OCPD ACP Azam Abdul Hamid to disperse within five minutes.
Musa (Umno Bukit Mertajam chief Musa Sheikh Fadzir) then explain to Azam that the protestors wanted to hand over a four-point memorandum to Lim, who was sworn into office four days ago.
But when Azam allowed a delegation from the group to do so, the leaders declined claiming that it was pointless to meet a chief minister who had made up his mind “to destroy the Malays”. (me: Or rather, they came unprepared)
…
A number of Umno representatives will however hand over the memorandum to Penang Yang Dipertua Negeri Abdul Rahman Abbas in a weeks’ time.
“This is a Malay country, but Malays are marginalised in their own country,” said Ahmad, who also described PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim “as a traitor who had sold the Malays to Chinese and Indians” (me: nothing beats having UMNO fellas reminding me that I am still the ‘kaum pendatang’).
Will Badawi or Najib respond to their UMNO counterparts in Penang? Will Badawi and Najib blast these protesters for taking part in an illegal street demonstration, which according to these two top leaders, is ‘not the Malaysian way’? Or will they keep silent, and forever be known as hypocrites?
For more links to other sites that have blogged about this, visit Penangite Lucia Lai’s blog. 88politics has more pictures and videos.
You Might Find These Interesting
- The Inconsistencies Of The Royal Malaysian Police
- Bersih Gathering Aftermath: Reports/Views From Other Blogs
- Malaysia Government Building a Police State? The Culture of Fear and Intimidation (2)
- How Najib and MCA Protects Us From Another May 13
- Vote for MCA, MIC, Gerakan, PPP, and you vote for UMNO
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16 Responses to “So Are Street Demonstrations Our Culture Now? Answer Us, Badawi!”
Add your comment
Nah… Don’t put too much hope on Pak Lah. By the way, I’d like to hear your views on Anwar Ibrahim, whether he’ll be a good PM.
March 15, 2008 at 6:27 am
Let them do what they want, this country is a democracy after all. They will lose ground support soon.
- MENJ
March 15, 2008 at 6:31 am
Now I am so ashamed for condemning BERSIH and HINDRAF protests in my blog. UMNO is doing the same thing but they don’t get tear gases and water cannon. Pak Lah and other politicians don’t even make immediate condemnation against them. They don’t even think twice and don’t even care if Penangites get hurt or die in the protest. What a shame Pak Lah. That is your hometown!
March 15, 2008 at 8:02 am
The pm stokes the racial discord
He talks about NEP and Malays
Then conveniently he says he is pm for all Malaysians
Why the contradiction?
He just doesn’t know what he says
Trying to say something defending his race
And forgetting the other races
Warning Guan Eng on NEP
This is unbecoming of a federal leader
NEP benefits the UMNO and its cronies
This has been allegedly written many times
The poor and village folks don’t benefit it
Now UMNO Penang staged demonstration
Who is telling lie now?
PM says demonstration isn’t the way
Now his party members did it
Will he send the UMNO leaders to Kamunting?
I don’t think so!
The people who demonstrated weren’t sure
What the UMNO leaders told them to do
These people out from Penang Island
Don’t know what benefits they get
They just went and walked blindly
To me NEP shackles the Malays
They become the pawn of their leaders
So they become their own slaves
Never want to brave the new world
Let the new state government get to work
Watch and record what the government does
The leaders must tune in on its manifestos
And the promises made during the election
March 15, 2008 at 10:02 am
The question really is whether these “protestors” are true Malaysians or not ?
The silence is quite deafening from the PM and DPM.
March 15, 2008 at 2:01 pm
We.are.not.a.fuckin.Malay.country
March 15, 2008 at 2:07 pm
More video and pics found here http://88politics.blogspot.com/
March 15, 2008 at 7:55 pm
it was rumoured (which i believe could be true) most of the protestors came from the mainland or neighbouring states, kedah, perlis (since friday is holiday for them) and most of them are mamak. some people even say they were paid RM50 to be there. dunno lah if any truth in it but it is a possibility seeing that BN did pay people to attend their ceramah (my friend personally found that out).
March 15, 2008 at 11:56 pm
Pak Lah’s days as a PM & UMNO president are numbered…
March 16, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Illegal gathering at Padang Ipoh today.
Malaysians are rediscovering their rights to assemble. Good sign for democracy. I remember those massive crowds in Trafalgar Square, London. Everyone just marched peacefully.
March 16, 2008 at 11:14 pm
they dont learn, dont they? people are pissed off with their double standards. UMNO is like a law unto themselves. and this is one of the reasons why people vote with their feet to kick them out. Continue with your present behaviour and you, UMNO may find yourself being the opposition party in Parliament. Good riddance then, unless you change for the better.
March 17, 2008 at 10:35 am
Sooo.. Islam forbids oppression and favoritism… so what’s this about the NEP giving discounted houses etc etc?
Marginalize? Wow, whoever wrote that has got to have skin thicker than oxen hide (or shit for brains, but I digress…). Who’s marginalizing anything? It’s called EQUAL turf being a nation as whole–MALAYSIAN.
Kids need to stop crying and stop being big babies about it. Welcome to the real world where you actually have to EARN your keep; now sit down and shut up.
March 17, 2008 at 7:28 pm
THe makcik in Terengganu has more guts than these guys. Although she lost, she showed her determination and hardworking-ness, unlike these chaps who got free money from NEP.
March 17, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Dan-yel,
I can’t formulate any views on whether Anwar will be a good PM. The signs are showing that he will be a good opposition leader due to the fact that he can manage to unite the opposition into a workable coalition, but PM, it’s still too early to say.
hcfoo, chauncey,
The only top gun in BN blasting Penang UMNO is Koh Tsu Koon himself. So safe to say, we can all now call Pak Lah and Najib hypocrites.
lucia,
If those people were paid to protest, I wouldn’t be too surprised myself. All throughout the past campaigning, the only way BN tried to solve problems was to throw money at the problems and hope it goes away. Like a Chinese saying “Lor Chin Dat Yun”
Henry,
Them being peaceful doesn’t make it alright for them to NOT apply for a police permit. They haven’t felt the anger and frustrations of being denied a police permit.
March 17, 2008 at 9:22 pm
[...] As we should never ever forget history, especially when the contrasting event is something happened quite recently, let me take you back to last month, when 1000 Penang UMNO staged a one-hour gathering outside Komtar. [...]
April 16, 2008 at 6:13 pm
I was in the demonstration on the 25.11, and i experienced it myself. It was a peaceful demonstration, we were just standing at the side of the road and in the space thats not distracting the traffic or anyone there. How come the roads are closed? the fru and police forced us to go to the road by splashing chemical content water and shooting tear gas, they are the one made the whole scene a chaotic one. Trust me friends, one police officer even told me to sit in the middle of the road to draw the attention of the british government, the ruling party treat us like a kindergarden kid or worse than that, even samy velu said that we are a bunch of uneducated people, for the knowledge of all, I was there with 5 more people, I m a basic degree holder and 3 others are master degree holder, and 1 Phd in Political Science, does that make sense why well educated people were in the street at that moment? The best part is, all of us are well established businessmen. Thank you for aloowing me to write some of the truths here, Thats how far we can go in this country, thats the limit for our progress here.
Important fact! Hindraf is an organisation that has NO relation with any terrorist group and WE ARE NOT,NOT, NOT AT ALL ANTI MALAYS OR ANTI-ISLAM, we are just asking for our rights and not an obstacle to anyone.
July 21, 2008 at 5:30 pm