Bersih 3.0 on, Nazri rules out Dataran

Tarani Palani

The electoral watchdog will hold another protest at Dataran Merdeka to push for reforms.

KUALA LUMPUR: Electoral watchdog Bersih, which held a mammoth street protest last July that dealt a severe blow to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s administration, has fixed April 28 for its next rally.

Speaking at a press conference here, Bersih’s committee revealed that the rally, which will be a sit down protest (duduk bantah) will be held at Dataran Merdeka.

However, the planned rally might run into trouble since Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Abdul Aziz objected to the venue.

“Dataran Merdeka is not a gazetted area for peaceful assemblies,” he told reporters in Parliament.

Meanwhile, Bersih chairperson S Ambiga said the upcoming rally would focus on three key demands – the resignation of the Election Commission, the electoral process must be cleaned up before the next general election and international observers should be allowed to monitor the polls.

She also said that Himpunan Hijau would hold its 3.0 rally alongside Bersih 3.0.

The last protest, dubbed Bersih 2.0, had forced the government to set up a Parliamentary Select Committee to look into reforming the electoral process.