 |
| Ambiga did not rule out more demonstrations in the future. |
The federal government needs to actively engage with Bersih and respond to its electoral demands instead of warning people against taking part in street demonstrations, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan has said.
The Bersih 2.0 chairman today demanded to know the Najib administration’s response to the group’s concerns, saying that Bersih had not ruled out more demonstrations in the future.
“There are reports that I said there will be no more rallies. This is not accurate and I see ministers repeating it. What I said was that there will be no more rallies in the near future. We do not take organising such rallies lightly.
The Bersih 2.0 chairman today demanded to know the Najib administration’s response to the group’s concerns, saying that Bersih had not ruled out more demonstrations in the future.
“There are reports that I said there will be no more rallies. This is not accurate and I see ministers repeating it. What I said was that there will be no more rallies in the near future. We do not take organising such rallies lightly.
“We will continue to take such steps to keep the pressure on in relation to reforming the electoral system but what we are hoping for is active engagement with the authorities on the subject,” she told The Malaysian Insider.
Ambiga charged that the government was “missing the point” by issuing threats and more blanket bans against future rallies when what it should be doing was to address the valid concerns raised on July 9.
“What is the government’s response to our call for reform? To our call for a royal commission of inquiry? The government will do well to address the rakyat’s concerns rather than to just continue to threaten them.
“Simply put, is the government going to look at electoral reform or not?” she asked.
Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday issued a warning that the government will brook no further street demonstrations.
The July 9 Bersih rally has put the Najib administration on the back foot, and criticism of the way it suppressed the mass gathering has taken on a global nature.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak arrived in the UK for a four-day visit last week and was greeted by a scathing editorial in The Guardian that compared his administration to ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak’s regime.
On Tuesday, US national daily The Wall Street Journal said the government’s response to the Bersih 2.0 rally has created an environment of fear and repression in Malaysia.
Despite the efforts to prevent the rally from taking place, tens of thousands converged on the capital city in a march for free and fair elections.
The protest, which the government earlier declared illegal, turned chaotic close to midday when the police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse protestors.
Ambiga charged that the government was “missing the point” by issuing threats and more blanket bans against future rallies when what it should be doing was to address the valid concerns raised on July 9.
“What is the government’s response to our call for reform? To our call for a royal commission of inquiry? The government will do well to address the rakyat’s concerns rather than to just continue to threaten them.
“Simply put, is the government going to look at electoral reform or not?” she asked.
Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday issued a warning that the government will brook no further street demonstrations.
The July 9 Bersih rally has put the Najib administration on the back foot, and criticism of the way it suppressed the mass gathering has taken on a global nature.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak arrived in the UK for a four-day visit last week and was greeted by a scathing editorial in The Guardian that compared his administration to ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak’s regime.
On Tuesday, US national daily The Wall Street Journal said the government’s response to the Bersih 2.0 rally has created an environment of fear and repression in Malaysia.
Despite the efforts to prevent the rally from taking place, tens of thousands converged on the capital city in a march for free and fair elections.
The protest, which the government earlier declared illegal, turned chaotic close to midday when the police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse protestors.
UMNO dogs must be very scare to have a CLEAN and FAIR election.
ReplyDeleteWhy can't they just clean up the current dirty and unreliable electoral system?
Why UMNO prefer the Illegal Immigrants more than the local genuine Sabahans?
Well Muhyidin, focus on the issues at hand and respond to it in an objective manner and supported by facts and data. No point issuing threats.
ReplyDeleteThis is the biggest shortcoming of the UMNO/BN people...who continue to think that they are god's gift to Malaysians. Always take the easy way out by avoiding the issues and playing the race, religion and security cards.
These won't work anymore. The world is changing at a rapid pace whilst UMNO/BN is regressing. You got a PROBLEM that needs urgent fixing.
Putrajaya must be feeling the pressure now. I think they will make their stand soon.
ReplyDeleteThe government should handle this matter wisely.
ReplyDeleteThe EC didn't do anything about this?
ReplyDeleteEC should be dissolved. Let the international watch dog to replace our EC in the coming GE.
ReplyDeleteSimple as that, rakyat only want an answer so why can't government just address this electoral reform matter as soon as possible?
ReplyDeletewhat will the govt do about it?
ReplyDeletewait and see is not a good step..action must be taken..
ReplyDeleteapa akan jadi pada PRU13 nanti?
ReplyDeleteNapa2lah dengan isu ni.. Tak habis2. Kerajaan pun lambat btl bagi respon. alalalla
ReplyDeleteTak sabar nak tunggu next GE. Entah apa yang akan berlaku nanti.
ReplyDeleteIni akan mempengaruhi PRU akan datang.
ReplyDeleteharap isu yang timbul ditangani dengan sebaiknya.
ReplyDeleteisu ini akan terus dimainkan oleh pembangkang.
ReplyDeleteAmbiga jangan asyik membangkitkan api rakyat.
ReplyDeletemerealisasikan tuntutan Bersih bagi pihak Putrajaya adalah satu kekalahan.benarkah?
ReplyDeleteRasanya tak salah jika Putrajaya memenuhi tuntutan Bersih memandangkan ia adalah untuk satu pilihan raya yang bersih dan adil. satu tuntutan oleh rakyat juga.
ReplyDeletethere's nothing to hide if BN really 'clean'.
ReplyDeleteBERSIH wanted immediate action on their demands that are written in their memorandum. in their demands, the changes required involved changing the law and this can only be done in Parliament. In the past few months or years, none of the elected PR MP's have ever raised these memorandum points in Parliment, why are they not raising it in Parliment? They have the proper channel, why not use it?
ReplyDelete