Poll: Malaysians most confident of their elections

The Star (6/12/2007): Malaysians are not only the strongest supporters of democracy in Asia but are also the most confident that their country's elections are fair and free, according to a recent study by TNS and Gallup International.

New findings from Gallup's Voice of the People research showed that Malaysians' belief in the transparency of their elections stands in contrast to the sentiment expressed by more than half of respondents across the region who do not consider their country's election processes to be impartial.

The survey interviewed more than 60,000 people in 56 countries around the world, representing the views and attitudes of more than 1.2 billion citizens.

Eight out of 10 respondents surveyed across Asia agreed that democracy is still the best system of government despite it facing problems.

About 73% of Asians said they were satisfied with the overall democratic practices in their home countries -- only 6% of Malaysians were dissatisfied. Nearly half (47%) of respondents said their elections were weighted, imbalanced and biased.

Malaysians generally felt that they were well represented by their government's actions and that they had political stability and security.

TNS and Gallup International conducted the study in Asia between June and August this year with the citizens of Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Philippines and South Korea.

Malaysian police break up electoral reform protest

Channel News Asia (17/11/2007): Police disrupted a street protest by confiscating balloons and leaflets after activists launched a campaign to urge Malaysians to wear yellow every Saturday to demand electoral reform.

At least 10 members of a group were distributing the materials to the public at a busy train station in the capital Kuala Lumpur when police moved in.

Ronnie Lui, from the opposition Democratic Action Party (DAP), described the police action as a form of "intimidation and harassment."

"I will say our street protest to promote a campaign to wear something yellow every Saturday was a success despite the police action. We manage to distribute the yellow balloons and ribbons before they stopped us."

"They also had threatened to arrest us," he added.

A protest last Saturday demanding electoral reform drew 30,000 people despite rain and a police ban. The rally was suppressed by police with water cannons and tear gas.

But protesters managed to hand a memorandum to Malaysia's king, who is highly respected but has a largely ceremonial role and usually stays out of politics.

The protest movement, a coalition of opposition parties and civil society groups called "Bersih" in the Malay language or "Clean", is pushing for reforms including a clean-up of the electoral roll and an end to postal votes.

Ronnie said "Bersih" picked yellow to represent people power, freedom and justice.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is expected to call snap polls in the next few months. - AFP/ac

Related:

Malaysian polls near: election body
Malaysian police vow to take action against protesters
Malaysian opposition slams government over protest clampdown
Malaysian police turn tear gas, water cannons on protesters

Reforms yes, but not through violence in the streets

NST (18/11/2007): Has the Barisan Nasional government ensured fairness in conducting elections? Ironically, despite flaws, fair elections have been proven in the defeats the BN suffered in the polls, writes KALIMULLAH HASSAN

It was more than 13 years ago -- February 1994 -- but for many journalists who covered the Sabah state elections then, some of the dramatic events that took place remain fresh in memory, probably because they are oft repeated at gatherings of these old hacks, at dinner tables or at the Foreign Correspondents Club where war stories are traded.

Just like the dramatic 1985 state elections when the newly-formed Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) eked a slim victory over the then powerful Berjaya party, only to see an attempted power grab with a dawn swearing-in of a chief minister from the losing party, and then having the decision reversed through intervention of the federal government, the 1994 election was also full of drama.

The PBS, which had then ruled Sabah for nine years and had, during this period, joined the federal ruling Barisan Nasional coalition and exited on the eve of general election in 1990 to back an opposition alliance that failed, was facing an onslaught from the BN which was determined to wrest the state back and punish the PBS and its president, Datuk Seri Panglima Joseph Pairin Kitingan, for their treachery in 1990.

As was convention, the deputy prime minister and deputy head of the BN, headed the BN election campaign. In 1990, the deputy prime minister who led the unsuccessful campaign to beat the PBS was the late Tun Ghafar Baba. In 1994, it was the newly appointed deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Encyclopedia Brittanica, in its review of Malaysia for 1994, states:

"Anwar Ibrahim was Umno's chief strategist for the February (1994) elections in Sabah, the Borneo state long ruled by the opposition United Sabah Party (Parti Bersatu Sabah).

"The BN won 23 state assembly seats, whittling PBS's legislative strength down to 25. Joseph Pairin Kitingan, Sabah's chief minister for nine years, was forced to dissolve (his government) even before it could convene in March because almost all PBS legislators had defected. Umno's Sakaran Dandai then became Sabah's chief minister."

What really happened was that many of the PBS assemblymen defected to the BN, forcing the collapse of the PBS government within days of its victory.

I cannot recall exactly when but it must have been early in the morning of Feb 20 or 21, shortly after the PBS had been announced the winner in the election.

My colleagues and I, who were covering the election for our respective organisations, had spent the whole night running around a deserted, suspense-gripped Kota Kinabalu.

Remembering the 1985 attempted power grab, Pairin had driven to the gates of the Istana to be sworn in as chief minister but was refused entry. His Land Cruiser was parked at the gates and he refused to leave until he was sworn in. He would stay there for two nights.

Meanwhile, all his elected assemblymen were locked up in his official residence, Sri Gaya, and their mobile phones taken away to prevent any attempt from the BN to contact them and induce them to jump ship.

All the BN needed was for two assemblymen to cross over and the PBS would have been reduced to a minority.

Dozens of reporters and cameramen were holding vigil at the Istana gates but in the wee hours, we left one of our colleagues to hold fort while the rest returned to the Hyatt Hotel, where we all stayed, to take a much needed rest. But it was not to be.

It was about 4am when I received a call in my room from a lawyer I had befriended -- Abdul Rahman -- and he was sobbing.

Abdul Rahman said there were rumours that the police would storm Sri Gaya and take the assemblymen away. I found it hard to believe that such a thing could happen; but this was Sabah, and with the power grab of 1985 still in mind, I dressed and went to see Abdul Rahman.

He wanted my colleagues and I to go to Sri Gaya and if such a raid did occur, at least we could witness it and tell the world about it.

Bone weary, my colleagues were woken and we all went to Sri Gaya. There was no police raid, of course, but tension was extremely high.

The next day, Pairin, who had waited at the Istana gates for more than 36 hours, was sworn in as chief minister, unbathed, unshaved, bleary-eyed and wearing the same clothes he had on two days earlier.

But barely days later, his government collapsed as many of his assemblymen defected and the BN formed the next government.

In his policy address at the PBS annual congress on Sept 23, 1997, Pairin had this to say:

"Of course, our most bitter experience as well as that of the people of Sabah as a whole was being forced out of government after winning the 1994 state elections. The fourth-term PBS government lasted only about two weeks before the mandate given by the people was stolen through undemocratic manoeuvrings of the BN. The resignation of the government was caused by defections of a majority of PBS assemblymen to BN parties. Some of the former PBS assemblymen also formed their own political parties and later joined the BN.

"The manner in which the PBS government was forced out of power and made an opposition party is certainly unprecedented in our beloved country of Malaysia. As leaders and members of PBS, we must all rise and take up the challenge to reverse this dark spot in Sabah's history by ensuring that the party is returned as the rightful government of Sabah in the next election."

A year later, PBS deputy president Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili, now a federal minister, said: "We should consider what happened in Sabah in 1994 as history that should not be repeated. The federal government must not allow its machinery to be abused by irresponsible groups intimidating the voters, using phantom voters, buying PBS assemblymen, and closing the door of the Istana as was done during the last election."

The PBS website still has this posting on the 1994 election where it states: "Having lost the majority in the state assembly, Datuk Seri Panglima Pairin resigned as Chief Minister on March 17, 1994 before a shocked Malaysian public. It was unbelievable that a case of a democratically elected government losing power within days after a general election due to party hopping by dishonourable assemblyman was happening for the first time on Malaysian soil."

And all these happened when Anwar led the campaign in Sabah.

In 1999, after Anwar was sacked from his post by then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the new deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi led the BN election campaign in Sabah.

The Hongkong-based weekly, Asiaweek, reported: "Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Ismail, (Parti Keadilan president and Anwar's wife) decries Barisan's alleged misuse of public facilities. Yet the irony is that when Dr Wan Azizah's husband, Anwar, was deputy PM, he reportedly used the same methods for his Sabah campaign."

In a subsequent issue, Asiaweek reported on the BN's overwhelming majority in the 1999 Sabah election: "Given the stakes involved, it is of little surprise that the BN pulled out all stops to win. For one thing, the polls were a test of Barisan's legitimacy in Sabah. In the previous state election, held in 1994, victory had gone to rival PBS. Barisan ended up in power only because 26 assemblymen bolted from PBS to either join Barisan or form their own parties.

"Everybody realised that the government in 1994 was formed because people jumped," says Karim Bujang, BN's secretary in Sabah.

"The coalition's mandate was therefore suspect; a victory this time around would establish beyond doubt that Barisan did indeed have the support of Sabahans."

It was not surprising to see Anwar in the forefront of last week's demonstrations by some non-governmental organisations and mainly opposition party supporters demanding electoral reform because if anything, Anwar is a politician through and through. And, as has been proven time and again, Malaysians have short memories.

But with historical perspective, it does seem strange that Anwar, who headed two of the most controversial election campaigns in Malaysian history in the last 15 years, would be the one asking for electoral reforms.

Umno members and many older Malaysians will also remember the 1993 Umno election where Anwar took on then party deputy president and deputy Prime Minister Tun Ghafar Baba, an election where money, the media and government machinery were blatantly abused to oust Ghafar and his team.

The problem was so severe that in three subsequent Umno general assemblies after that, then Umno president Dr Mahathir Mohamad decried the corruption within the ranks, and cried, asking Umno delegates to repent and reject those who used money to get votes.

It must be noted that the current Prime Minister, Abdullah, was on Ghafar's losing team in 1993, and was dubbed Mr Clean by the media for his refusal to thwart the electoral process by using money.

Abdullah displayed his seriousness when after the 2004 Umno election, where allegations of money being used were widespread, he initiated investigations which led to one of his own staunch supporters and friend, Tan Sri Isa Samad, a cabinet minister, who had won the vice-presidency, being implicated and suspended from the party for six years.

It is interesting to go back into history and get a perspective on the demonstration of last Saturday.

Two others in the forefront of the march to Istana Negara to hand over the memorandum seeking electoral reforms were Parti Islam president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang and DAP chairman Lim Kit Siang.

Kit Siang has been at the helm of the DAP for more than 30 years until he passed the baton to Kerk Kim Hock, who subsequently left the party for health reasons although it was widely known he had major differences with Kit Siang's son, Guan Eng. Guan Eng is now secretary-general of the party.

The Aliran magazine, which was one of those which signed the memorandum for electoral reforms, reported: "Guan Eng too cannot erase the talk of nepotism by virtue of being DAP supremo Kit Siang's son. It didn't help of course that the PAP in Singapore handed its leadership to Lee Hsieng Loong, the son of its own supremo, Lee Kuan Yew, at the same time. Therefore the image of a DAP being a highly regimented party that purges anyone seen as threatening Kit Siang's hegemony has not been totally erased."

That seems to be the perception.

After all, in the past, many had been touted as potential successors to Kit Siang. They included people like architect Goh Hock Guan, activist Fan Yew Teng, social worker Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, lawyer Wee Choo Keong and Kerk. All eventually fell by the wayside and left the DAP. Maybe the DAP needs to reform its electoral process. But maybe Kit Siang believes it has been free and fair although others in his party don't think so. Again, you cannot make everyone happy, can you?

What happens when the DAP wins an election through the electoral process that it wants reformed?

After a crucial by-election in Tapah which the DAP won against the BN, Kit Siang, was quoted by Asiaweek, which said he was ecstatic.

"It is a political earthquake," Kit Siang said of the DAP's stunning upset win in the May 17 parliamentary by-election.

The death of the incumbent MP caused the by-election in the semi-rural Perak state constituency. The result meant an astonishing vote swing to 39-year-old lawyer M. Kulasegaran, who demolished a previous government majority of 14,000 to win by 3,000. The DAP last held the seat in 1969. And it won this time despite the campaign efforts of then Deputy PM Anwar Ibrahim and other senior officials.

Kit Siang described the votes as "golden letters in the annals of Malaysian history".

"It is an earthquake registering six on the Richter scale," he joked. The government is not laughing, however.

And what happens when they do badly in an election?

The Asiaweek report after Kit Siang and DAP deputy chairman Karpal Singh lost their seats in the 1999 general election, despite the opposition Keadilan and Pas having an overall better showing, says: "Lim Kit Siang, who stepped down as DAP secretary-general on Dec 2 to take responsibility for the party's poor performance in the elections, said in his resignation letter that the new political equation effected by the rise of Pas would pose a threat to a democratic secular Malaysia."

The World Socialist website has this report on its pages: "Despite losing two longstanding leaders, DAP, which is based primarily among Chinese voters, hung onto 10 seats but failed to make any significant gains. Defeated leader Kit Siang described the result as 'a catastrophic defeat' with our traditional non-Malay and Chinese supporters abandoning the party.

"Dr Mahathir had been able to successfully play on the fears of Chinese and Indian voters that a vote for the DAP would only assist its electoral ally Pas and its plans for an Islamic state.

"Kit Siang's comments underscore the highly unstable character of the opposition coalition: DAP has always opposed any call for an Islamic state and laws yet it formed an electoral alliance with Pas. In the aftermath of the election it is unlikely that the opposition parties will remain in a coalition for long."

Therefore, it appears that Kit Siang did not blame the electoral process when his party won in Tapah; and blamed his partners, Pas, when he lost in 1999. Ah, well?

Perhaps, the most potent argument by the government that elections in Malaysia are actually conducted in free and fair manner, is the fact that it has lost states like Kelantan, Sabah, Terengganu and Penang at one time or another, almost lost Kedah in 1999, and also lost crucial by-elections like the one in Tapah and Lunas.

But certainly, there are weaknesses -- which the government and opposition parties acknowledge -- that need to be rectified.

In a general election, where ultimate power goes to the winner, no one will be satisfied, especially those who lose.

But even in developed democracies like the United States, as seen by George W. Bush's highly controversial victory over Al Gore in the 2000 presidential elections, there are flaws. If the system had been perfect, maybe George Bush would not have become president; maybe there would never have been a war in Iraq and there would not have been all the subsequent consequences of that war which have impacted the rest of the world. Maybe.

In any democracy, a country must strive to be better in everything it does -- in improving its institutions, its economy, the welfare of its people or in adapting to change.

And the current government despite its flaws and share of incorrigible politicians has repeatedly talked and sought improvements in the delivery systems, in strengthening institutions and in ensuring it is fair to all Malaysians.

We could do without Barisan MPs who make crude and disparaging remarks against women, or those who make racist statements; we could do without those who flout the laws by building palaces without seeking approvals; we could do without incompetent members of government. But then, we don't live in a perfect world.

It is interesting to see what the coalition of NGOs and political parties want reformed.

In their memorandum to the king, they listed down eight aspects which they said need to be reformed, some of which, such as use of indelible ink and cleaning up electoral rolls of dead and untraceable voters, have already been adopted by the Election Commission, but were contained in the memorandum nevertheless.

One of the things they sought was that "at least 30 per cent of members of parliament must be women" and that "opportunities must be given for women and the disenfranchised".

So far, only the Barisan Nasional, through Abdullah, has a stated policy of ensuring that women occupy at least 30 per cent of top posts in government. It's hard to see Pas, which relegates women's role in politics and government, to accommodate that policy though Hadi Awang was in the forefront of the march to the Istana.

In fact, none of the opposition political parties have the same representation -- either in percentage terms or absolute numbers -- of minorities and women as does the Barisan Nasional.

The DAP is mainly Chinese-based and Keadilan and Pas are almost wholly Malay-based. The BN, through its coalition partners, has members of almost all Malaysian communities within its ranks and minorities like the Orang Asli and Thai-Malaysian community are represented through senators in the Upper House.

The BN had the highest number of women candidates in the 2004 elections. Will we see Pas, DAP and Parti Keadilan Rakyat fielding more women candidates in the next general election? Let's see.

The memorandum also asks for many other things, like a longer campaign period, closer and more effective monitoring of money spent by the different parties during the campaign, and public funding for political parties' campaigns and for women and minority groups, and greater access to public radio and television. These are certainly reasonable requests which should be considered. But could not the same memorandum be handed over to the prime minister and the king in an organised manner without a march through the busy streets?

In conclusion, they ask that the king withhold consent for dissolution of parliament should the changes they seek not be implemented.

Who are these coalition members who signed the memorandum?

Some are recognisable names -- like Aliran, Abim, MTUC, opposition parties like the DAP, Pas, PKR and Sarawak National Party (SNAP), but some don't even strike a chord. Citizen's Health Initiative? Group of Concerned Citizens? Community Action Network? Labour Resource Centre? Malaysian Voters Union? Save Ourselves?

They are all signatories to the memorandum and claim to represent civil society and other Malaysians.

Really? Then how come the rest of us have heard little or nothing at all about them before?

Maybe they believe they represent Malaysians and civil society. But who represents the tens of thousands of others who become victims of these marches and demonstrations, when traffic comes to a standstill, business gets disrupted and innocent bystanders have to run helter skelter to avoid the mad rush?

The 1998 and 1999 reformasi demonstrations showed how unruly the crowd can become.

They did march through Chow Kit to the Umno headquarters, breaking furniture and windows, and then to the then prime minister's house in Sri Perdana, forcing a showdown with police. They did attack the vehicles of a TV3 crew, breaking its windows and thrashing the cars while the crew sat in fear inside.

They did force small traders to close shop and innocent bystanders to scurry and hide in fear when they marched through the streets.

They did beat up policemen and burn police motorcycles in their demonstrations then. When business stagnates, when people lose jobs, when investors fear to invest, who do they go to for recourse? Lim Kit Siang, Hadi Awang, Anwar Ibrahim or to Citizen's Health Initiative?

If people again go back to history, they will note that the May 13 racial riots were sparked off by street demonstrations. If we go back to the riots in Sabah in 1986 when bombs were going off throughout the state and five people were killed in days of chaos, we will note they started from street demonstrations in Karamunsing. Therefore, it is only natural that both the authorities and Malaysians at large are fearful of the street demonstrations which during the reformasi era of 1998 also turned violent.

Maybe the organisers intend these demonstrations and street marches of "solidarity" to be peaceful. Whether by design, or whether by the law of unintended consequences, we have seen how these demonstrations led to chaos and mayhem.

Hopefully, there will be a time when the country can accommodate such protests and demonstrations which will run their course peacefully and it is the hope of every Malaysian, I should think, that the sooner this can happen, the better.

It's funny that Thierry Rommel, the outgoing European Union ambassador, says that Malaysia is under "an effective state of emergency" when referring to the police action of using water cannon and tear gas to break up the crowd of demonstrators who refused to disperse despite repeated warnings by the police.

By his argument, we should conclude that Italy, a member of the EU that Rommel represents, is also under an effective state of emergency since last week.

Why? Well, we saw on BBC and Al Jazeera how Italian police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse rioting crowds protesting against the shooting of a football fan in Lazio by a policeman. Strange that Al Jazeera did not come to the same conclusions about Italian police and authorities as they did on Malaysian police in their reports.

After all, both the Italian and Malaysian police were enforcing the same standard operating procedure of police throughout the world -- dispersing unruly crowds using water cannons and tear gas.

Maybe, coming from the Middle East, which must be a thriving hub of democracy, Al Jazeera has higher standards for "less developed" democracies like Malaysia. We must wonder why then the Bush administration is hell bent on introducing democracy to the Middle East.

Conclusion: Not everything in this world is free and fair.

What the eye does not see

Malaysia Today (16/11/2007): “Tuanku Mizan Regrets Claims He Supports Illegal Rally,” screamed the Bernama headlines. The Malay version said, “Tuanku Mizan Kesal Dakwaan Baginda Sokong Perhimpunan Haram.” Both versions can be read below.

Wow! To the layman this sounds very serious indeed. A very ‘high-ranking’ Istana Negara official named Datuk Wan Mohd Safiain Wan Hasan and going by the title of Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja has issued a statement of behalf of The Agong. Who is this guy anyway?

Well, this guy holds the position that Jeanne Danker used to hold before she dislodged the Raja Permaisuri Agong to become Malaysia’s so-called ‘First Lady’. Actually, the Prime Minister’s wife is maybe the ‘22nd Lady’ after the Raja Permaisuri Agong, the consorts of the nine State Rulers, the four Undangs, the four Governors, followed by the few ex-Raja Permaisuri Agong still living. But the government-controlled media would like us to believe that the Federal Constitution of Malaysia is wrong in placing 21 other ladies above the Prime Minister’s wife.

This Wan Safiain chappie hails from Terengganu and works for the Prime Minister’s Department. In fact, the entire office of the Istana Negara comes under the Prime Minister’s Department. I remember relating an incident which happened way back in November 1999, a few days before the Tenth General Election.

In November 1999, I was tasked with the job of delivering a letter from Barisan Alternatif to the Istana Negara requesting an audience with The Agong then, my uncle. I delivered the letter at noon on Friday and went off to the mosque for my Friday prayers. When I went back to the office around 2.30pm there was a reply waiting for me in the fax machine turning down our request for an audience, with a suggestion that we try again after the general election. Our letter was addressed to The Agong. The reply came from the Prime Minister’s Department. The Agong never got to see the letter and was not even aware that one had been sent. And that was probably the fastest reply ever from a government department in Malaysia’s entire history.

So now we know how the Istana Negara office works. The office comes under the Prime Minister’s Department and the people in that office are planted there by the Prime Minister’s Department to be the eyes, ears and sometimes mouth of the government as well. And today we saw an example of how it has become the mouth of the government. Today’s announcement by the Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja, not the Keeper of the Royal Seal but the Keeper of the Royal Linen a la Jeanne Danker before she became ‘First Lady’, is a prime example of how these plants from the Prime Minister’s Department are the eyes, ears and mouth of the government.

That is why it was not wise to quietly deliver the BERSIH Memorandum to The Agong. If that had been done, then the Memorandum would have been hijacked and would have been diverted to the Prime Minister’s Department instead -- and The Agong would have never seen it. And that was also why it was necessary for 100,000 citizens to march to the Istana Negara to ‘escort’ the Memorandum -- although only 50,000 eventually got through because they sealed off all the roads into Kuala Lumpur which resulted in one of the worst traffic jams in history.

This Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja chappie is a most unpopular personality in the Palace office. Everyone in the Palace office knows he has been planted there as the eyes and ears of the government. And his job is not only to keep a watch on things and report back to the Prime Minister’s office whatever is happening in the Palace, but he has also been tasked with the job of frustrating every effort of The Agong in interacting with the rakyat (citizens).

Today’s press announcement did not come from The Agong. It did not even come from the Keeper of the Royal Seal whose job it is to make official statements on behalf of The Agong. It came from a glorified chamber maid planted in the Palace as an enemy in the blanket. These are the worst kind of slime-balls and scumbags. They smile and call you friend. Then they stick a dagger in your back.

100,000 rakyat wanted to meet their Monarch that afternoon of Saturday, 10 November 2007. The Agong did not say no. The Agong will never say no to 100,000 rakyat who wish for an audience with His Majesty. The Agong just wanted to know how many people will be representing the 100,000 rakyat and what their names are.

The Agong also realised that the government will certainly try to frustrate the effort of the 100,000 rakyat who wished for an audience with His Majesty. And this did happen. The government said that a police permit would be required and that the organisers should apply for one. So the organisers did, but the application was rejected. And the government warned that if the 100,000 rakyat still insisted on pursuing the march then the government would retaliate with force. And the government did as promised.

When the first volley was fired on the assembled marchers around the Masjid Jamek-Masjid India area, word was passed down the line that the 19th Brigade of the Royal Malay Regiment or Regimen Askar Melayu Di-Raja (RAMD) was on stand-bye, to move in if there are any fatal casualties. Fourteen armoured cars (kereta perisai) had earlier arrived from Sungai Petani and were parked at the Sungai Buloh military camp, ready to roll at a minute’s notice. It would take them ten or fifteen minutes to arrive at the scene of any violence against the rakyat.

Panic buttons were pressed and alarm bells rung. This had happened once on 13 May 1969 in Kampong Baru. The Royal Malay Regiment is not one to mess around with. The Agong is their Commander-in-Chief and soldiers are trained to obey their Commander-in-Chief at no consequence to their own lives.

The police backed off. They were reduced to traffic control where those positioned at junctions stopped cars to allow the marchers to safely cross the road. The RAMD remained on stand-by and the next morning the fourteen kereta perisai quietly slipped out of Sungai Buloh and went home.

This has worried the government. The Agong did not say he did not wish to meet the representatives of the 100,000 marchers. He in fact asked for their names. And when the government issued threats of violence against the marchers, the 19th Brigade of the RAMD was brought into Kuala Lumpur with fourteen kereta perisai. This was The Agong’s way of saying that if you shoot the marchers, just like you did in Batu Burok in front of The Agong’s palace in Kuala Terengganu, then all hell will break loose.

So the government backed off. They had no choice. The 100,000 rakyat wanted to meet The Agong and His Majesty had said yes. And the 19th Brigade of the RAMD came to town to ensure that yes means yes.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi issued a decree at the Umno General Assembly the day before the Saturday, 10 November 2007, march. He said he ‘pantang dicabar’. This translates to mean he is allergic to being challenged. And his son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin, asked the police to arrest all the marchers. Yes, arrest all the marchers. Arrest all 1,000 of them! Arrest all 2,000 of them! Hey, even if it is 5,000, arrest all 5,000 of them. But wow, it is 50,000 with another 50,000 on the way. How to arrest 50,000, or 100,000 if the other 50,000 reach Kuala Lumpur?

Oops, forget about arresting them. 50,000 is too large a number to arrest. There are not enough trucks to ferry 50,000 and not enough jails to house 50,000 people. Instead, close all the roads leading into Kuala Lumpur. Seal off Kuala Lumpur and not allow anyone in. Let it remain 50,000. Don’t allow it to grow to 100,000. Then we will announce we won. We will announce that the march failed and the ‘illegal demonstrators’ were prevented from assembling at Dataran Merdeka.

Shit, now we are told that they never intended to assemble in Dataran Merdeka in the first place. The Dataran Merdeka thing was a decoy, a Red Herring. They wanted the police to assemble in Dataran Merdeka so that they can march unhindered to the Istana Negara. We were tricked. They won. We lost.

Okay, all is not lost. We can still announce that The Agong is not happy with the march. We will announce that The Agong did not agree to the march. We will announce that The Agong did not consent to the march. That will give the perception that we won and the 100,000 marchers lost. And we will get the head of housekeeping to make that announcement. After all, he is our plant in the Palace. He is our man and on our payroll. And, since he carries this very impressive title, no one will know he is just in charge of making the beds and not actually anyone important.

Oh yeah? Well, Malaysia Today knows. And Malaysia Today knows that most in the Istana Negara regard him as a slime-ball and a scumbag. And anything he who makes the beds says does not matter as long as it is not The Agong himself who said it. Try again guys. Maybe you will have better luck next time. And please, don’t ask that slime-ball and scumbag to make any statements if you want us to believe that it is really The Agong who is saying it.

Tuanku Mizan Regrets Claims He Supports Illegal Rally

Bernama (16/11/2007): Yang di- Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin has expressed regret over claims that he and the Palace approved and supported Saturday’s illegal rally in the city.

In a statement issued here today by the Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja of Istana Negara, Datuk Wan Mohd Safiain Wan Hasan, the King also regretted the gathering which was organised by the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) and supported by the opposition parties.

Tuanku Mizan stressed that he and Istana Negara had at no time approved or given any support, directly or indirectly, to any quarters that organised or was involved in the illegal assembly or any other activities that contravened the law.

On Saturday, Bersih, which comprises several non-governmental organisations, as well as some opposition parties had gathered their supporters at various spots in the city, including around Masjid Jamek, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and the National Mosque, before marching to Istana Negara to hand over a memorandum to Tuanku Mizan.

The following Monday, PAS secretary-general Datuk Kamaruddin Jaffar said Bersih had decided to submit the memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong after the ruler himself approved of it, and that the presence of Bersih at Istana Negara was to hand over the memorandum to the King's representative.

In the statement, Tuanku Mizan said as the head of state, he was responsible in ensuring that the country's administration based on the constitutional monarchy system, as enshrined in the Federal Constitution, was respected and adhered to by all.

He hoped that the people would act in accordance with the law and not be involved in any illegal action or activity.

“Every Malaysian citizen is responsible for maintaining public order for continued peace and stability in the country,” Tuanku Mizan said.

The King also hoped that the people would together work at preserving unity and harmony to ensure that the country would continue to develop, prosper and be respected.

Meanwhile, Wan Mohd Safiain said that Istana Negara, for the first time, summoned the media to publicise the content of the statement as the King viewed the matter seriously.

“Normally, Istana Negara would issue a statement via facsimile but this time, we had to call the media here to ensure that the King’s message reaches the people,” he added.

Tuanku Mizan Kesal Dakwaan Baginda Sokong Perhimpunan Haram

Bernama (16/11/2007): Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin melahirkan rasa kesal dengan dakwaan kononnya baginda dan Istana Negara memperkenankan dan menyokong satu perhimpunan haram di sini Sabtu lepas.

Dalam satu kenyataan yang dikeluarkan oleh Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja Istana Negara Datuk Wan Mohd Safiain Wan Hasan hari ini, Seri Paduka Baginda juga melahirkan rasa kesal dengan perhimpunan itu yang dianjurkan oleh satu kumpulan dikenali Gabungan Pilihan Raya Bersih dan Adil (BERSIH) yang disokong parti-parti pembangkang.

Dalam kenyataan itu, Tuanku Mizan menegaskan bahawa baginda dan Istana Negara tidak pernah pada bila-bila masa jua memperkenankan atau memberikan apa-apa sokongan secara langsung atau tidak langsung kepada mana-mana pihak yang menganjurkan atau terlibat dalam perhimpunan haram itu dan apa-apa jua kegiatan lain yang berkaitan yang menyalahi undang-undang negara.

Sabtu lepas, BERSIH yang disertai oleh badan-badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) dan parti pembangkang mengumpulkan penyokong-penyokongnya di beberapa tempat di sekitar ibu kota termasuk Jalan Masjid Jamek, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman dan Masjid Negara sebelum berarak ke Istana Negara bagi menghantar memorandum kepada Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

Isnin lepas, Setiausaha Agung PAS, Datuk Kamaruddin Jaffar, berkata dalam satu kenyataan bahawa BERSIH mengambil keputusan menyerahkan memorandum itu kepada Yang di-Pertuan Agong setelah Tuanku sendiri memberikan perkenan Baginda, dan kehadiran BERSIH ke Istana Negara pada hari Sabtu itu, adalah bagi menjunjung perkenan Tuanku untuk menyerahkan memorandum itu kepada wakil Baginda.

Tuanku Mizan bertitah sebagai Ketua Utama Negara, baginda bertanggungjawab untuk memastikan bahawa prinsip sistem pentadbiran negara berlandaskan prinsip Raja Berperlembagaan seperti yang termaktub dalam Perlembagaan Persekutuan sentiasa dihormati dan dipatuhi oleh semua.

Baginda berharap agar rakyat Malaysia sentiasa bertindak dengan mematuhi undang-undang negara dan tidak melibatkan diri dalam apa-apa juga kegiatan atau tindakan yang menyalahi atau bertentangan dengan undang-undang negara.

“Setiap rakyat Malaysia bertanggungjawab untuk memelihara ketenteraman awam demi menjamin keamanan dan kesejahteraan negara,” titah baginda.

Seri Paduka Baginda juga berharap agar rakyat dapat bersama-sama mengekalkan semangat persaudaraan dan perpaduan demi membina negara yang lebih makmur, bersatu padu dan dihormati.

Wan Mohd Safiain pula berkata pihak pengurusan Istana Negara buat pertama kalinya memanggil media untuk menghebahkan kenyataan ini kerana Yang di-Pertuan Agong memandang serius perkara itu.

“Kebiasaannya Istana Negara mengeluarkan kenyataan melalui faksimili, tetapi kali ini terpaksa memanggil media untuk memastikan ianya dapat dihebahkan kepada seluruh rakyat,” katanya.

No need for institutional reform to election system - Nazri

Bernama (15/11/2007): There is no need for institutional reform to the Malaysian election system as it has worked well for the country in the last 50 years, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said.

He, however, admitted that there was still room for improvement, but to say that the system was unfair was not a correct description.

Mohamed Nazri was replying to a question posed by Al Jazeera's anchor Teymoor Nabili of the satellite channel's 101 East Programme in which he was one of three panellists invited to discuss last Saturday's illegal assembly in the city.

The other panellists were Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin and Human Rights lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar.

The 30-minute programme touched widely on the issue, including the media's way of handling it.

Agreeing to the minister's reply, Khairy said the system just needed some processes to be strengthened.

"There is nothing wrong with the system, but some processes need to be strenghtened... but the institution is fine, the system works," he said, pointing out that the Barisan National (BN) had lost Kelantan in the elections.

To Al Jazeera's contention that police had used force to disperse the gathering, Nazri said they did not use excessive force for obvious reasons, especially since they (police) were aware that they were under close scrutiny not only by Malaysians but the whole world.

On crowd and traffic control during the gathering, Khairy said the police handled it well.

To Imtiaz's allegation that the traffic jams that resulted were caused by police road blocks, Khairy said they were put up because of the demonstration.

He said a similar rally in Terengganu in September had descended into a violent incident.

"So, you cannot blame the police for thinking that this (Saturday's gathering) was going to end up the same way," he added.

To Nabili's question on the local media's minimum coverage on the gathering, Nazri said he did not think the local media were siding with the government.

"The media are free to report anything. In fact, I got all my information (on the gathering) from the (news) papers," he added.

Meanwhile, Nazri said changes made by the Election Commission had shown that the government had not turned a deaf ear on issues brought forward by the people.

However, he said, not every issue or grouse voiced (by the people) was necessarily right.

"We have a system here... if you have any grouse, channel it to the ballot box. We have an election every five years or less... at the end of the day, we will decide and you must never underestimate the will of the people," added Nazri.

Khairy also said that the gathering could not be used as a barometer of the general sentiments of the public.

REHMAN RASHID: The great wet T-shirt contest

NST (16/11/2007): WE have to get one distinction clear. The issue arising from last Saturday's Bersih rally at Istana Negara was not electoral reform, but freedom of assembly.
Electoral reform is a non-issue in this case, because the Four Demands printed on the backs of all those yellow tee-shirts are readily enough addressed.

Indelible ink. Done.

Clean electoral rolls. Being done. (As part of the process, all registered voters should check their MyKad to see if they're still residing at their registered addresses.)

Free and fair access to media. Fair enough. (Though we'd need to discuss further the definitions of "free", "fair", "access" and "media".)
Abolition of postal vote. Potentially unfair; how about "free and fair postal vote"?

In any case, the avenues of recourse in these matters are not only open but waiting -- if only for the present administration to practise the sincere conciliation it advocates.

The basic premise of a public rally, however, is to involve as many people as want to be involved, and impact the rest. Several thousand joined in (the numbers, shall we say, are disputed) and uncounted tens of thousands more were impacted.

Mass-transit train stations were closed, while taxis and buses were immobilised in the huge traffic jams that coiled around the city like dead serpents in the rain. On the peripheries of the throng at Istana Negara, KLites stood still in stoic clusters, sheltering in the underpasses.

On the roads and highways, motorists waited, grateful for once for the rain, which at least kept their engines cool. As well as, perhaps, the heads of the protesters and the police.

It was, indeed, a well-conducted bit of rebellious anarchism. As is my wont, I had gone to where the party was not: Dataran Merdeka. A group of about 300 protesters had gathered there, held back on Lebuh Pasar Besar at the Loke Yew Building, just short of the square. They stood and chanted slogans for about 30 minutes, during which time most of them slipped off in the direction of Istana Negara.

A rear guard of a couple of dozen stayed on for another 30 minutes, then thanked the police line, apologising politely for having kept them standing in the rain. There was a brief chorus of "Hidup Polis! Thank You Polis!" -- what they were demanding was as much for the sake of the police as for all Malaysians, they declared -- and then they adjourned to the palace.

There was none of the violence of Bersih's previous rally, in Batu Buruk, Terengganu, two months before. No burning flags, no wild gunplay in the teeth of gang-mauling mobs.

After the protesters' "memorandum" was handed over to a palace official (the Agong being at the time back home in Terengganu) the rally dispersed, leaving not even litter in its wake.

With all this admirable restraint, it's understandable that the rally organisers should blame the disruptions of that Saturday afternoon on the police. Understandable, but not acceptable.

Having declared it an illegal assembly, the police were bound by law, first of all, to prevent it. Hence, the roadblocks that jammed everything in a five-kilometre radius of the palace. They were not entirely to identify potential rally-goers (although five coachloads of Pas supporters were filtered out on their way into town) but, much more simply, to stop everyone equally.

Secondly: Maintain public order. I got to Masjid Jamek half-an-hour after the water cannon and tear gas, and so cannot tell you whether the mood of the protesters had warranted it. The police said yes, the protesters said no; you had to be there.

Other than that, protesters, police and bystanders alike maintained their discipline. The protesters had their moment, their message was delivered, and the disruptions of that afternoon were due to only one thing: the illegality of public assembly without permit in this country.

The Right to Assembly is included in Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Hence, it is also contained in Article 10 of our Federal Constitution. It is on this basis that the event's organisers and advocates contend that the rally was not illegal.

But what they were really up against were the provisions inserted into the Constitution as a caution against mass rallies turning into mass murder.

Perhaps the 47 years since the Emergency and 38 years since the May 13 riots are sufficient to prove that Malaysians can be trusted now to assemble without let or hindrance; that the police should be expected to perform only traffic management, not crowd control.

Had that been the point of it, Saturday's rally might have helped prove that point. Breaking the law to change the law may be justified if "the law is an ass, an idiot", as Dickens' Mr Bumble fatuously remarked in Oliver Twist. But changing the system to change the law is oxymoronic.

You might as well throw the baby out with the bathwater, cut off your nose to spite your face and burn your mosquito net to foil a mosquito. Whatever else you achieve, you'd look a right berk.

In language lawyers understand, here is a motto all are welcome to cut out and keep: Respice finem (res-PEE-kay fin-EM). Keep the end in view.

The value of keeping the end in view

ALSO to be noted was the role of the political opposition at last Saturday's rally. Leaders of PKR, Pas and the DAP were at the head of the phalanx in front of the palace gates, but their presence seemed practically ceremonial.

The protesters' memorandum on electoral reform was passed up from the ranks to the palace officials receiving it, with the party chieftains bestowing their blessings upon it in transit. But it wasn't their show. Party politics merely went along for the ride, expressing moral support for a cause from which they could also abdicate responsibility.

These leaders did not lead, they followed. In relegating themselves to a coalition of NGOs on an agenda of reform, our honourable parliamentary opposition handily reformed themselves out of the picture.

Which might explain why Pas president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang immediately threatened another rally back on his home turf in Batu Buruk, Terengganu. Perhaps stung by his relegation to hanger-on last Saturday, what with his party having done so much for the two Bersih rallies, Hadi seemed bent on reclaiming ownership of the issue.

(His apparent desire to make a Waterloo or Valley Forge of Batu Buruk shows that Hadi either lacks irony or is richly endowed with it -- the place couldn't be more appropriately named.)

One understands his frustration. The rally at Istana Negara was a spaghetti bowl of causes. Bersih comprised 67 NGOs, plus the political opposition. Not much could define a single cause that could rope together advocates of everything from theocracy to gay rights. Given how far from the centre all extremes fall in this country, "electoral reform" was just about the only thing that fit the bill.

What really united the protesters was their unhappiness with the Establishment. "It's not about changing individuals any more," said a friend I met watching the rally. "It's about changing the system."

I disagreed. I believed humanity constructs its institutions on our highest aspirations expressly in order to protect us from our basest natures. The system was neutral. What mattered was how it was operated and for what purpose -- not even by whom.

In that sense, though, my friend was right: it wasn't about changing individuals. The record is replete with instances of individuals, whatever their strengths and weaknesses, being subsumed by the system and rendered helpless before its bidding, regardless of their own will or intentions.

The system can be a corral of sacred cows, hobbled by myth and convention. The system can demand compliance and obeisance from even its most radical or idealistic components, writing the script and prescribing the rituals they defy at the peril of their prospects.

As such, the idea of simple human decency redeeming the loss of faith in our judiciary, civil service, legislature, police force and electoral process is, well, quaint. The honest judge or good cop is an anathema to the reformist impulse. "The police are a hundred per cent corrupt," said my friend, flat out.

That seemed unfair. Former inspector-general of police Tun Hanif Omar had only said 40 per cent. But if witnessing corruption turns a witness into an accomplice, then my friend could be right. The other 60 per cent would have to be held guilty of complicity, and corrupt by association.

I could sympathise, therefore, with his insistence on "changing the system". That's where he and the rally made perfect sense: Why respect a system you want to change? So my only question to him was: Change to what?

What do these protesters want to see arise from the ashes of what they deplore? A republic? An Islamic state? A confederated monarchy of hereditary rulers? Or would an alternative government comprising the present opposition and its civil-society sponsors suffice? If so, say so. This needs to be much more clearly articulated than in simple sloganeering for justice, integrity, transparency and changing the system.

History has posted a health warning on the intoxicating elixir of "People Power". When a revolution fuelled on this juice succeeds, the ensuing realities are never as righteously thrilling. People Power is a heady rush but, as with all addictive substances, it's a fix with a crushingly depressive comedown, curable only by another hit.

Thus has it been with the Philippines, 21 years and four chief executives since the Marcoses were hounded out of Malacanang and dazed pedestrians wandered around the presidential palace pilfering towels and Imelda's left-over shoes.

This is not to disparage our neighbour. The Philippines today boasts a ferocious democracy, crusading media and a passionate civil society, and remains a sovereign member in good standing of the global community of nations and a valued contributor to their workforces.

But is that what our reformists want? If so, no one's saying so. "Clean Elections", "Judicial Reform" or "Burn Baby Burn" all lack the specificity that would help the rest of us know exactly what they're selling. What exactly do they see as a better future for all? Where would they take us? What's the end they have in view?

Respice finem.

Malaysia's anti-democracy

Jakarta Post (13/11/2007): The Malaysian government's clampdown on Saturday's rally in Kuala Lumpur is predictable as far as the political constellation in place in the country is concerned.
Malaysia is still attempting to secure socio-political stability in the multi-ethnic society it badly requires to build a strong and prosperous country, as outlined in its Vision 2020. Despite his squabbling with Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and his predecessor share much in common, notably when it comes to stability.

Mahathir is an avid critic of democracy, as well as the West, but Malaysia, particularly the dominant Malay ethnic group, and Badawi owe him a lot for laying the foundation for the country's economic viability during his 20 years in power. Under Mahathir, Malaysia survived the financial crisis that swept across Asia in the late 1990s.

Malaysia is taking the popular model of development that puts democracy behind economic growth and all the conditions needed to turn the economic wheel, in particular political stability. The efficacy of development sans democracy has been visible in South Korea, Indonesia under Soeharto and China, to name just a few examples.

That Badawi defended the use of tear gas and water cannons to disperse the weekend protest for electoral reform clearly explains that post-Mahathir Malaysia, to a large extent, is not making a break with the past. Mahathir's legacy is too precious an asset for Badawi to afford to lose.

While no local media covered the rally, foreign news services reported that 300,000 people attended the event, making it the biggest rally in the country since 1998 and the arrest of fired deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Police said they detained 245 people who were among the crowd marching to the royal palace to hand over a letter calling for clean and fair elections.

The fact that local media exercised self-censorship in response to the rally only underlines the long-standing paradox of Malaysia, where publications are free to live without press freedom.

By any conventional standard, Malaysia remains a quasi-democracy despite the bicameral parliamentary system that has prevented an absolute monarchy from reigning.

The country maintains the draconian Internal Security Act and Official Secrets Act, which have continued to haunt the opposition or those who differ with the government, including the press.

Following the heavy handling of Saturday's protest, nobody can guarantee that the Badawi administration will not be tempted to enforce these acts to crack down on government critics and the opposition and further silence the media. The world is watching closely whether Badawi will seek another Ibrahim to be sacrificed to keep Malaysia free from noisy criticism.

While Badawi may have every reason to stifle the critics for the sake of stability, he must take into account the changing world, where sooner or later no government will be able to resist public aspirations.

Indeed, democracy has not fully taken root in the region, but it is growing fast thanks in part to the revolution in information technology. Malaysia can ban criticism against the government, but the question is for how long.

Democracy, human rights and press freedom are the keys to success in today's world. Unfortunately, Malaysia, as well as other developing nations, is afraid to give this recipe a try.

Malaysian cops fire tear gas as thousands demand electoral reforms

The Nation (10/11/2007): Malaysian police on Saturday fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse tens of thousands of demonstrators who gathered in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur to rally for fair elections in the country's largest anti-government protest in almost 10 years.

Despite the pouring rain and heavy police presence, more than 10,000 people gathered early Saturday at several different locations in the city centre and marched their way to the royal palace to hand in a memorandum appealing for royal intervention in the coming elections, which is not due until 2009 but is widely expected to be held before the end of the year.

Shouting "Long Live the king" and "Save Malaysia," the protestors, who donned yellow as a sign of support for royalty, waited outside the palace gates until the king's secretary received the memorandum from president of the opposition Parti Islam SeMalaysia, Abdul Hadi Awang.

Just minutes earlier and several kilometres away, police fired tear gas and water cannons at several thousand people gathered at the Jamek Mosque in the city centre after they ignored warnings to disperse.

Police say the gathering and march were illegal, as the organisers failed to get a permit which is required in Malaysia for any public gathering involving more than five people.

However, rights groups have slammed the police and the government for not issuing the permit, saying that the people's freedom of expression was being stifled.

The reasons given by the police were that the massive protests would inconvenience motorists and that the demonstrations were a hazard to public safety.

"We will be no different from Myanmar and Pakistan," said Lim Guan Eng, the Secretary-General of the opposition Democratic Action Party. "It is paranoia to the stage of hysteria," he said, referring to the massive police presence, including riot officers and helicopters.

The purpose of Saturday's demonstrations is to call for the removal of "phantom voters" or bogus names from electoral rolls, a crackdown on government workers using absentee ballots, and access to state-controlled media for all political parties.

"We are here to make our voice heard, that we want fair and free elections for this land," said Joshua Chin, a lawyer and member of the country's Bar Council.

"Our calls for a fair election have in the past fallen on deaf ears, and so now, we seek the king himself to ensure that the Election Commission does its job right," said Chin, who was one of hundreds of lawyers who joined in the march.

"We hope that as the king looks out of the palace and sees this sea of yellow, he will realise we are crying out to him to bring justice to a system gone wrong."

Earlier in the week, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi urged organisers to call off the protests, saying that "democracy through street demonstrations" could not be accepted.

Saturday's public gathering is the largest the country has seen in almost 10 years.

In September 1998, more than 10,000 people took to the streets after then deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim was sacked and subsequently jailed by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, on charges of corruption and sexual misconduct.

Anwar subsequently formed a political party, which was one of the 70 organisers of Saturday's demonstrations.

Activists say Malaysian elections are generally tilted in favour of the ruling National Front coalition, due to the redrawing of constituencies to weed out known opposition supporters. There are also frequent allegations of vote-buying, election commission bias and the use of public funds and the media by the ruling parties.

The National Front has been in power since Malaysia's independence in 1952 from the British.

Teargas used on rare Malaysia demo

CNN (10/11/2007): The largest political protest in nearly a decade erupted in Malaysia's capital city, Kuala Lumpur, Saturday with riot police aiming water hoses and tear gas at thousands of protesters gathered to demand electoral reform.

Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Kuala Lumpur to demand electoral reform.

Opposition parties and civic groups demonstrated against alleged fraudulent activity in the electoral process and demanded an overhaul of Malaysia's electoral commission ahead of general elections widely expected for early next year.

Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had vowed to suppress the demonstration, and on Saturday police had erected roadblocks and ramped up security in an attempt to close down the city's center.

Nevertheless, in defiance of a government ban, between 30,000 and 40,000 demonstrators massed outside the royal palace in Kuala Lumpar, according to media reports. Opposition group leader and former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim put the number much higher, claiming more than 100,000 people had gathered in the streets.

One witness said police fired tear gas and jets of "chemically-laced water" at hundreds of demonstrators who sought refuge in the city's Jamek mosque and in commercial buildings.

"Squads of police are chasing hundreds of protesters along alleys and on the city streets," the witness said, speaking on condition of anonymity. He said blockades had been set up around the city to hem in demonstrators.

Photos of the crackdown showed protesters dressed in yellow t-shirts and head scarves shielding their heads as water from cannons blasted down on them.

New York-based Human Rights Watch slammed the rally ban and urged the government to support free speech ahead of elections expected to be called early next year.

"If Malaysia wants to count itself a democracy, it can begin by upholding constitutional guarantees of free speech and assembly. The way the system works now, only the ruling coalition can get its messages out," it said.

Human Rights Watch said Malaysian elections have been sullied by vote-buying, the use of public resources by the ruling parties and accusations of bias against the Election Commission.

Malaysia has had only one party in power since 1957.

Speaking to CNN after briefly addressing the opposition-backed rally, Anwar said "we are demanding that the (election) process be cleansed. There are no such thing as fair elections in Malaysia at the moment."

He said a memorandum detailing allegations of corruption by the commission had been handed to Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia's constitutional monarch.

Malaysian law stipulates the sultan must give his royal assent to the commission after it has been appointed by the government.

Opposition party leaders, including Anwar, called the mass meeting to protest alleged fraudulent activity in the electoral process.

"This was an attempt to threaten the people. But I am very proud that Malaysians were not intimidated and turned out in such great numbers and that they behaved peacefully," Anwar said.

Anwar was heir apparent to former premier Mahathir Mohamad until 1998, when he was sacked and charged for corruption and sodomy.

The sodomy conviction was overturned, but the corruption verdict was never lifted, barring him from running for political post until next year.

Malaysians demand electoral reforms

Central Chronicle (11/10/2007): Malaysian police detained 245 people after firing tear gas and water canon to disperse thousands of people demanding electoral reforms in the biggest political street protest in nearly a decade, police said Sunday.

The detainees were released after providing statements but could later be charged and face up to a year in jail if convicted for taking part in the illegal assembly, a police spokesman told The Associated Press.

``We are still investigating but they have all been freed on bail,'' said the spokesman, who declined to be named citing policy.

Thousands of people defied a government ban against the rally Saturday in downtown Kuala Lumpur but were scattered as police fired tear gas and water canon near the Merdeka (Independence) Square where they had gathered.

The crowd, many wearing yellow T-shirts, later regrouped and marched to the royal palace in a procession more than 300 meters (yards) long, shouting ``Save Malaysia'' and ``Long Live the People.'' Yellow is the color of Malaysian royalty.

Protesters presented a memorandum to a representative of the king, urging him to intervene to ensure the election system is revamped ahead of general elections widely expected for early next year.

``This is our right. Our rulers are so proud of our democracy but in fact our democracy is worse than Burma, worse than Bangladesh,'' said Rosli, a 40-year-old government worker. ``We just want to correct what is wrong. We just ask for fair elections.''

National police chief Musa Hassan was quoted as saying by the Sunday Star newspaper that authorities exercised restraint but were forced to fire tear gas and water cannon after protesters refused to disperse.

He put the crowd size at about 4,000 people, but rally organizers estimated at least 30,000.

It was the biggest political demonstration in Malaysia since supporters of former deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim took to the streets for several days in September 1998 to protest his dismissal from the Cabinet and ruling party by then-leader Mahathir Mohamad.

Anwar subsequently formed the People's Justice Party, one of three opposition parties involved in Saturday's demonstration. ``It is a good signal that Malaysians want freedom and democracy, and they want free and fair elections,'' he said.

Anwar has called for further street protests until reforms are implemented. But Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak warned the government wouldn't tolerate illegal assembly.

The rally was organized by some 70 non-governmental organizations and opposition parties, which demanded the removal of phantom voters from electoral rolls, a crackdown on government workers using absentee ballots, access to state-controlled media by all political parties, and an end to vote-buying and other irregularities.

The Election Commission has agreed to another demand that voters daub a finger with indelible ink to prevent them casting more than one vote.

Malaysia police break up protest

BBC (10/11/2007): Malaysian police have used tear gas and water cannon to disperse thousands of protesters who were marching in Kuala Lumpur to demand electoral reform.

The event was organised by a group called Bersih which is made up of opposition parties and dozens of non-governmental organisations.

The marchers were prevented from entering central Merdeka Square because police said they did not have a permit.

Police estimated the crowd at between 10-30,000 people.

Rising tension

Heavy rains could not stop the marchers as they made their way along the roads on the side of Merdeka Square.

Many of them were in the yellow shirts which organisers had asked them to wear.

They were calling for changes to the electoral process in Malaysia to prevent fraud.

One demand is to use indelible ink to show who has voted.

Tension had been rising over the past few days with the prospect of violent confrontation at the march.

Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi said on Friday that he expected trouble, despite the police ban.

But participants told the BBC they had the democratic right to express their demands.

"We don't have to wait until election day, that's five years or more," one demonstrator told the BBC.

There was a heavy police presence and rally organisers said 20 people were arrested.

Although no one made it into the central square, a small group did march to the national palace, home of Malaysia's king, to present a memorandum detailing their concerns.

Malaysia may charge protesters

Taipei Times (12/11/2007): Malaysian police detained 245 people after firing tear gas and water canon to disperse thousands of people demanding electoral reforms in the biggest political street protest in nearly a decade, police said yesterday.

The detainees were released after providing statements but could later be charged and face up to a year in jail if convicted for taking part in the illegal assembly, a police spokesman said.

"We are still investigating but they have all been freed on bail," said the spokesman, who declined to be named citing policy.

Thousands of people defied a government ban against the rally on Saturday in downtown Kuala Lumpur but were scattered as police fired tear gas and water canon near the Merdeka (Independence) Square where they had gathered.

The crowd, many wearing yellow T-shirts, later regrouped and marched to the royal palace in a procession more than 300m long, shouting "Save Malaysia" and "Long Live the People."

Yellow is the color of Malaysian royalty.

Protesters presented a memorandum to a representative of the king, urging him to intervene to ensure the election system is revamped ahead of general elections widely expected for early next year.

"This is our right. Our rulers are so proud of our democracy but in fact our democracy is worse than Burma, worse than Bangladesh," said Rosli, a 40-year-old government worker. "We just want to correct what is wrong. We just ask for fair elections."

National police chief Musa Hassan was quoted as saying by the Sunday Star newspaper that authorities exercised restraint but were forced to fire tear gas and water cannon after protesters refused to disperse.

He put the crowd size at about 4,000 people, but rally organizers estimated at least 30,000.

It was the biggest political demonstration in Malaysia since supporters of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim took to the streets for several days in September 1998 to protest his dismissal from the Cabinet and ruling party by then-prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

Anwar subsequently formed the People's Justice Party, one of three opposition parties involved in Saturday's demonstration.

"It is a good signal that Malaysians want freedom and democracy, and they want free and fair elections," he said.

Anwar has called for further street protests until reforms are implemented. But Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak warned the government wouldn't tolerate illegal assembly.

The rally was organized by some 70 non-governmental organizations and opposition parties, which demanded the removal of phantom voters from electoral rolls, a crackdown on government workers using absentee ballots, access to state-controlled media by all political parties, and an end to vote-buying and other kinds of irregularities.

Malaysia’s Badawi under pressure after protests

Financial Times (11/11/2007): Malaysia saw its biggest anti-government rally in nearly a decade at the weekend, suggesting that the government of Abdullah Badawi could face a tougher time at the next general election than its landslide victory in 2004.

The protest was called by the election watchdog group Bersih, which means "clean" in Malay, to demand electoral reforms ahead of polls expected to be called in the first quarter of 2008. All three main opposition parties supported the demonstration.

The opposition coalition wants an overhaul of what it says are unreliable voter lists and biased media coverage that favours the government.

The demonstration was led by Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader, whose sacking as deputy prime minister in 1998 led to the last sizeable street protests. Mr Anwar vowed further protests, in spite of a government ban on demonstrations.

The protesters, who organisers said numbered up to 30,000, clashed briefly with riot police, who used used water cannons and tear gas. But the rally ended peacefully with a petition requesting reforms being delivered to the king’s palace in the centre of Kuala Lumpur.

Police said 245 people were detained but later released on bail.

The demonstration in the country’s capital was the latest challenge to Mr Abdullah's government, which has been criticised for failing to tackle corruption and promoting the interests of the country's ethnic Malay majority at the expense of the Chinese and Indian minorities.

Analysts believe that the government will fail to achieve the same level of support that it received in the 2004 elections, when it gained more than 90 per cent of the parliamentary seats.

An election setback could weaken support within the ruling United Malays National Organisation for Mr Abdullah's economic reforms, including the restructuring of state companies and the creation of special economic zones that repeal many of the affirmative action provisions for ethnic Malays.

The protest came a day after the conclusion of the annual Umno party conference, where Mr Abdullah made a plea for ethnic harmony.

Delegates at previous Umno gatherings have lobbied for the protection of special privileges for ethnic Malays, who are not as well off financially as the ethnic Chinese minority. This year's meeting was more subdued as the government wants to win the support of Chinese voters in the next election.

However, signs of greater ethnic polarisation mean that the majority of Chinese voters, who make up 25 per cent of the electorate, are likely to support the opposition at the next polls.

The protesters at the weekend demonstration wore yellow, the colour of royalty, in a plea for the royal aristocracy to reassert its influence on politics. Several royal family members have called for a relaxation of the autocratic rule that was established by Mahathir Mohamad, Mr Abdullah's predecessor.

The political power of the sultans, the hereditary rulers of nine of Malaysia’s 13 states, who are elected on a rotating basis to five-year terms as king, was curbed by Dr Mahathir in the 1980s.

Mr Abdullah also faces dissension within the ruling National Front coalition government, which includes representatives from the ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.

The demolition of a Hindu temple last week provoked accusations by the Malaysian Indian Congress, a coalition partner, that authorities were pursuing a policy of destroying Indian religious sites. Authorities have been pulling down illegal temples, but the Indian community feels singled out.

Police turn water cannons on protesters

The Australian (10/11/2007): POLICE in the Malaysian capital have used water cannons to disperse crowds gathering for a banned opposition rally demanding changes to the electoral system, witnesses said.

Police had effectively shut down the city centre to try and foil the rally, with hundreds of policemen, including riot police equipped with shields and batons, standing guard at Kuala Lumpur's landmark Merdeka (Freedom) Square.

"Police sprayed water cannons twice to disperse a crowd of about 500 protesters chanting slogans," said a witness who watched the incident outside a mosque guarded by about 50 riot police, while helicopters hovered overhead.

The crowds were among the tens of thousands of people who had planned to gather in the capital's city square in one of Malaysia's biggest anti-government rallies since 1998.

At another mosque nearby, a second group of around 500 protesters, mostly teenagers in yellow T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Bersih" or "Clean" in Malay, marched in heavy rain towards the city's colonial-era railway station.

The demonstrators chanted "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest) and carried banners reading "Save Malaysia" and "Abolish postal voting".

Police had mounted roadblocks along the main roads to the city centre and erected barricades nearby, checking on cars and turning away protesters, witnesses said.

"We will not hesitate to take action against those who defied our orders," state news agency Bernama quoted Kuala Lumpur police chief Zul Hasnan Najib as saying. The police had refused to grant a permit for the rally.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who oversees the police, said yesterday the government would not tolerate street demonstrations.

"They are challenging the patience of the people who want the country to be peaceful and stable. That is what they are challenging, not me," he told a meeting of his ruling party.

Opposition parties and rights groups have vowed to defy the police ban on the rally, which is expected to be led by opposition icon Anwar Ibrahim.

It could be one of Malaysia's biggest demonstrations since unprecedented anti-government protests in 1998 that led to Anwar's arrest and jailing.

The protest is being organised by Bersih, a loose coalition of 26 opposition parties and non-governmental organisations demanding reforms in the electoral process that they say heavily favours Abdullah's ruling coalition.

Abdullah, who won a record victory in a 2004 election, is widely expected to call snap polls in early 2008.

In September, police opened fire to disperse rioters at a Bersih rally in the northeastern state of Terengganu, seriously injuring two people.

Today's rally was due to culminate in a march to the nearby National Palace to present a written appeal to the King calling for electoral reform, Anwar's Keadilan party said.

"Our appeals to the government for reforms of the electoral system have fallen on deaf ears and as such it has abdicated its responsibility to safeguard the democratic institutions of the nation," Anwar told reporters on Thursday.

Malaysian police fire tear gas, water cannon on protesters demanding electoral reforms

Jakarta Post (10/11/2007): Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of activists at an opposition-backed rally demanding electoral reforms on Saturday.

The demonstrators were stopped by a police cordon near the Masjid Jamek mosque in central Kuala Lumpur as they tried to march to Merdeka (Independence) Square, where they planned to hold their rally.

Shouting "Allahu Akbar," or God is great, the demonstrators confronted police who then fired tear gas and water sprayed from a fire truck stationed nearby. An Associated Press reporter saw many people run into the mosque to take shelter.

Several thousand other activists, prevented from reaching Merdeka Square, faced off against police in a heavy downpour at another intersection as opposition leaders refused to call off the rally.

The government had declared the rally illegal, blocked all roads leading to Merdeka Square, and told activists they should be prepared to be arrested. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi warned Friday he expected violence during the demonstration, which organizers said would attract 10,000 to 40,000 people.

"The rally has been banned. It is illegal. We have set up road blocks to screen vehicles entering the city to ensure that there is no trouble," a spokesman at the traffic police headquarters told The Associated Press.

He declined to be named citing protocol.

The rally was organized by some 70 non-governmental organizations and opposition political parties to call for electoral reforms ahead of general elections widely expected for early next year.

They were demanding the removal of phantom voters from electoral rolls, a crackdown on government workers using absentee ballots, access to state-controlled media by all political parties, and an end to vote-buying and other irregularities.

The Election Commission agreed to another demand that voters daub a finger with indelible ink to prevent them casting more than one vote.

Malaysian law bans public gatherings of more than five people without a permit. Police refused to issue a permit for the rally, saying it may jeopardize national security and inconvenience motorists.

"It is paranoia to the stage of hysteria," said Tian Chua, a senior official of the opposition People's Justice Party, adding the rally will go on.

"This is not an anti-government protest. It is a citizens' gathering to call for clean and fair elections," he said.

Lim Guan Eng of the opposition Democratic Action Party, said Malaysia would become the laughing stock of the world. "We will be no different from Myanmar and Pakistan," where authorities have cracked down on protesters and arrested thousands, Lim said.

New York-based Human Rights Watch criticized the government for banning the rally.

"If Malaysia wants to count itself a democracy, it can begin by upholding constitutional guarantees of free speech and assembly," it said in a statement.

Malaysian police fire tear gas, water cannon on protesters demanding electoral reforms

IHT (10/11/2007): Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of activists Saturday at an opposition-backed rally demanding electoral reforms in the biggest anti-government street protest in nearly 10 years.

Police estimated the crowds to be between 10,000 and 30,000.

The demonstrators were stopped by a police cordon near the Masjid Jamek mosque in central Kuala Lumpur as they tried to march to Merdeka (Independence) Square, where the rally was scheduled.

Shouting "Allahu Akbar," or God is great, the protesters were sent running when police fired tear gas and a water canon. An Associated Press reporter saw many people run into the mosque to take shelter. When they re-emerged the water cannon was let loose again.

Rally organizers said police arrested 20 people, though police officials did not immediately say if they had arrested anyone. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

"This is our right. Our rulers are so proud of our democracy but in fact our democracy is worse than Burma, worse than Bangladesh," said Rosli, a 40-year-old government worker. "We just want to correct what is wrong. We just ask for fair elections."

"Look at our police, how brutal they are. The government only thinks of its cronies," said Rosli, who declined to give his full name, fearing retribution.

The government had declared the rally illegal and blocked all roads leading to Merdeka Square. International human rights groups have slammed Malaysia, saying the government has failed to act democratically.

A few thousand other activists prevented from reaching Merdeka Square faced off against police in a heavy downpour at another intersection.

Shouting "Save Malaysia" and "Long Live the People," the demonstrators — dressed in yellow shirts — formed a procession more than 300 meters (yards) long on the road.

Yellow is the color of royalty, and protesters hoped to appeal to the constitutional monarch to support them. Several groups of demonstrators — stopped at different access points to Merdeka Square — marched to the royal palace where they presented a memorandum to a representative of the king.

It was the biggest political demonstration in Malaysia since supporters of former deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim took to the streets for several days in September 1998 to protest his dismissal from the Cabinet and ruling party by then-leader Mahathir Mohamad.

Anwar subsequently formed the People's Justice Party, one of three opposition parties supporting Saturday's demonstration.

"It is a good signal that Malaysians want freedom and democracy, and they want free and fair elections," Anwar told reporters outside the palace.

He called Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi a hypocrite for denying Malaysians the right to peaceful assembly and condoning electoral fraud.

The rally was organized by some 70 non-governmental organizations and opposition political parties to call for electoral reforms ahead of general elections widely expected for early next year.

They demanded the removal of phantom voters from electoral rolls, a crackdown on government workers using absentee ballots, access to state-controlled media by all political parties, and an end to vote-buying and other irregularities.

The Election Commission agreed to another demand that voters daub a finger with indelible ink to prevent them casting more than one vote. (AP)

Malaysia police use water cannon at Anwar rally

Bostom.Com (10/11/2007): Police in the Malaysian capital used water cannon and fired tear gas on Saturday to disperse protesters in one of the nation's biggest anti-government rallies in nearly a decade.

Police arrested at least a dozen people as tens of thousands of protesters, led by opposition icon Anwar Ibrahim, marched in heavy rains to the King's palace to demand changes to the country's electoral system.

Hundreds of policemen, including riot police with shields and batons, guarded Kuala Lumpur's landmark Merdeka (Freedom) Square, the main mosque and the National Palace to foil the rally.

Police sprayed water cannon twice to disperse a crowd of about 500 protesters chanting slogans outside a historic domed mosque guarded by about 50 riot police, as helicopters hovered overhead.

Nearby, more than 2,000 protesters, chiefly teenagers wearing yellow T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Bersih," or "Clean" in Malay, marched in heavy rain towards the city's colonial-era railway station.

They chanted "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest) and "Reformasi," a reform demand that was the war chant of 1998 opposition protests, while waving banners reading "Save Malaysia" and "Election Commission, stop your tricks."

Groups of demonstrators later converged on the palace of Malaysia's king, where opposition leaders handed over a list of election reform demands.

The opposition said it would organize bigger rallies if its demands were not met.

Police minister Johari Baharum said the crowd numbered less than 10,000, but organizers put the figure at more than 30,000.

"I'm happy that the police managed to control the crowd. But they shouldn't do it again," Johari told Reuters. "We will come down hard on them."

Anwar said he was happy with the turnout despite the government's condemnation of the protest.

"I think this is a major success in the expression of public sentiment against fraudulent practices in the elections," Anwar told Reuters in a telephone interview.

"We will have to persist in this campaign to send a message to the government that people are tired of this kind of fraud."

Anwar was speaking after he and several opposition colleagues, including Hadi Awang of the hardline Islamist Parti Islam-se Malaysia and Lim Kit Siang of the Democratic Action Party, submitted their list to a representative of the ruler.

"THE PEOPLE'S RIGHT"

Mohamadiah Sohod, 33, a government worker from southern Johor state, said he was upset because police had refused to issue a permit for the rally. "This is the people's right, to assemble and air their grievances," he added.

Police effectively shut down the city centre, throwing up barricades on main roads to halt cars and turn away protesters, although crowds dispersed peacefully after the protest ended.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said on Friday the government would not tolerate street demonstrations. "They are challenging the patience of the people who want the country to be peaceful and stable," he said.

Previous protests of similar scale were anti-government rallies led by Anwar in 1998 before his arrest and jailing.

The rally was organized by Bersih, a loose coalition of 26 opposition parties and non-government groups that is pushing for reforms to an electoral process it says favors the ruling coalition.

Abdullah won a record victory in a 2004 election, and is widely expected to call snap polls in early 2008.

Two people were seriously injured in September when police opened fire to disperse rioters at a Bersih rally in the northeastern state of Terengganu.

(Correction: Bersih rally, not Anwar rally - bakaq a.k.a. ~penarik beca)

Bersih to proceed, appeals to the police

Malaysiakini (8/11/2007):“We urge the public not to be afraid of threats by the police or other irresponsible parties,” said Mohamed in a statement read by Bersih secretariat member Aiman Athirah Al Jundi.

“We do not intend to clash with anybody, not least the police, because we have proven that we are a peaceloving people,” Mohamad Sabu said. (Full report)

But police warn public - stay away

“Do not attend the gathering. Do not go near Dataran Merdeka this Saturday... we will take harsh action (against offenders),” Kuala Lumpur chief police officer Zulhasnan Najib Baharuddin said.

Related:

Khairy wants Bersih rally organisers arrested

“Don’t be like monkeys (beruk) on streets. If you want to fight, fight in the real ring like a man. At the general elections, we (Umno Youth) will fight and we will win!” exclaimed Khairy to roaring chants of approval from delegates.

Bloggers who slander must be brought to book, says Khairy

"There are no laws in the cyberworld except for the law of the jungle. As such, action must be taken so that the "monkeys" behave," he told reporters after opening the Papar, Kimanis and Sipitang Umno Youth annual delegates conference here today.

Pak Lah tak layan sikap macam iblis

Perdana Menteri, yang dalam lawatan kerja dua hari ke Pahang bermula semalam menegaskan, beliau tidak akan melayan pihak tertentu yang bersikap seperti "iblis" yang berasakan ia lebih pandai daripada orang lain.

‘Penyebar fitnah umpama beruk sarkas goncang pokok’

‘‘Jadi yang goyang pokok itu (sebarkan fitnah), saya ibaratkan seperti beruk, beruk sarkas,’’ katanya (Khairy) sambil disambut gelak ketawa perwakilan ketika berucap merasmikan Persidangan Perwakilan Pergerakan Pemuda UMNO Bahagian Klang, di sini malam tadi.

On beruk and iblis:

"...bukan budaya UMNO, itu budaya kurang ajar. Ada yang panggil saya beruk, ada panggil iblis, ini budaya UMNO yang baru,” kata Dr Mahathir.

Palace march for poll reforms on Saturday

STS (7/11/2007): A coalition of political groups is planning to hold a mass march on Saturday to the palace of the Malaysian King to hand an appeal to him to speak up for electoral reforms.

It might seem an odd move to some as the King is not involved in making election laws. But the organisers see it differently.

'We see the King as another institution to address besides the Election Commission and the government,' said Mr R. Sivarasa, a leader of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

The monarchy has been enjoying an upsurge in popularity, thanks to its recent intervention in some judicial appointments.

The country's nine hereditary rulers earlier this year refused to accept the Prime Minister's choice for a key judicial post as there were widespread concerns that better candidates were being passed over.

And last week, Malaysia's beleaguered Chief Justice Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim did not secure an extension of his term after the King refused to endorse it.

Even the most cynical political blogs have been peppered exuberantly with 'Daulat Tuanku', loosely translated as Long Live The King, a phrase rarely heard outside formal royal occasions.

Malaysians sat up and took notice because the Sultans rarely rock the boat.

Under the Malaysian Constitution, their consent is required for key government appointments.

'They are just doing their job, finally,' said Mr Sivarasa.

Previously, the rulers barely seemed to exist in public life, especially after their powers were steadily curbed by former premier Mahathir Mohamad.

The need for a royal assent to Bills passed by Parliament was removed in 1983, and the rulers' immunity from prosecution was curtailed in 1993.

'The balance of power fell overwhelmingly in the hand of the prime minister,' said Mr Sivarasa.

It also did not help that the image of the monarchy was severely tarnished after the press highlighted its excesses in the 1990s.

But to many Malaysians, this is less important than the current sense that the Sultans are in tune with public opinion. This has served to burnish their image to a high shine.

University of Malaya law lecturer Dr Azmi Shahrom said there was a strong sense among the public that the normal democratic processes have failed the people, and they are turning to the royalty.

The government appears to have paid attention. The last two times the rulers flexed their muscle over judicial appointments, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi acceded to their requests.

This is despite his legal advisers, among them the Attorney-General and the de facto Law Minister Nazri Aziz, taking the view that the rulers had to comply with the government's requests.

But that would have merely created an impasse.

'If it is seen to be against the royalty on an issue that the public feels strongly about, it could be problematic for them,' said Dr Azmi.

The government clearly will tread a little more carefully now, and in Dr Azmi's opinion, that is exactly how it should be.

'That's how checks and balances work,' he said.