SABM supports the People's rights to peaceful assembly |
Written by straits-mongrel | ||||||||||||||||||
Monday, 27 June 2011 08:40 | ||||||||||||||||||
1. Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia [SABM] unreservedly supports the initiative by BERSIH 2.0, the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, to hold a peaceful assembly on 9th July 2011. The “Walk for Democracy” to ensure the integrity and transparency of the electoral system is fully consistent with the rights enshrined in our Constitution. 2. BERSIH’s demands in essence encapsulate the People’s desire for greater accountability and transparency. The 8-Point demands unequivocally reaffirm the Rukunegara’s commitment “to maintaining a democratic way of life” and the immutable principle of “Upholding the Constitution”. 3. In this regard, we are alarmed by the response of the Institutions of State that seem clearly bent on demonizing the BERSIH 2.0 initiative. The response of the PDRM – an institution that is supposed to uphold the principles of impartiality and neutrality - is at best pathetic and at worst dictatorial. It is not the business of the IGP or the City Police Chief to issue warnings to the People not to assemble. Their duty is to provide protection for the People to exercise their rights guaranteed by the Constitution, not to intimidate and threaten the People. 4. We unreservedly condemn the action taken by the Police in the last 72 hours to prevent citizens from exercising their fundamental rights, namely:
i. The clampdown on the BERSIH road shows in Shah Alam and Kuala Selangor; ii. The arrests of citizens in several places for distributing BERSIH 2.0 leaflets and wearing the BERSIH T-shirt; iii. The arrest of 30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia members in Penang under the charge of allegedly “waging war against the King”! These pathetic attempts to intimidate and threaten the People are symptomatic of a paranoia that seems to afflict the Institutions of State. Citizens wanting to exercise their legitimate right to dissent in a peaceful manner can never be a threat to national security.
5. We condemn the unprofessional attempts by the Main Stream Media [MSM] to orchestrate the demonizing of the BERSIH 2.0 initiative. To paint the BERSIH 2.0 assembly as an unjustifiable ‘disruption’ to the lives of Malaysians is a surreptitious ploy to mislead the People. The role of the Media is to provide objective information, not obfuscate. A media beholden to ‘the powers that be’ has no business masquerading as the People’s champion. 6. Malaysians in numerous cities overseas would be gathering in support of BERSIH 2.0 on 9th July and without a doubt they would be given the protection to assemble peacefully by Police authorities in the respective cities! It is indeed ironic that right here in our own country, Malaysians for BERSIH 2.0 are denied such protection. We call upon the Government to direct the IGP to uphold the People’s right to peaceful assembly by providing the same protection. The Police must be prepared to facilitate the march to enable the People to exercise this democratic right. Let the People decide if they want to turn up in support of BERSIH 2.0 or choose to stay away. The World is watching. Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia [SABM] Kuala Lumpur 27 June 2011
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Last Updated on Monday, 27 June 2011 08:52 |