Amnesty International: Release or charge Bersih activists

The Malaysian Insider
by Melissa Chi

KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — Human rights group Amnesty International today demanded the government either immediately released Bersih 2.0 activists or charged them in court, instead of using detention without trial laws.

Police have detained six Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members under the Emergency Ordinance since last Saturday for investigations that they were “waging a war against the Agong” as they were found with T-shirts that had pictures of former communist leaders.

“Immediately release all activists or charge them with a recognisable criminal offence, drop unfounded charges, and respect the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” Amnesty International said.

The international non-governmental organisation (NGO) pointed out that Malaysian authorities were arbitrarily arresting and detaining scores of peaceful electoral reform protesters in the “worst repression of free speech and freedom of assembly” in recent years.

Since June 24, more than 100 activists have been arrested or questioned by police over their support of an electoral reform rally.

The demonstration is being planned for July 9 by the Coalition for Fair and Free Elections, also known as Bersih 2.0, meaning “Clean”.

“The Malaysian authorities are muzzling calls for electoral reform by throwing peaceful protestors in jail,” said Donna Guest, deputy Asia-Pacific director at Amnesty International. “We have not seen such a crackdown on political activists across Malaysia in many years.”

People have been arrested for as little as wearing yellow, which is the colour of Bersih 2.0, are being held without charge, and face investigation for sedition and unlawful assembly.

The government had also threatened to invoke the Internal Security Act over the rally, allowing for indefinite detention without trial.

“Malaysia is undermining its claim to be a moderate democracy through this campaign of repression,” Guest said.

On June 29, police raided the office of the Bersih 2.0 secretariat without a warrant, briefly detaining seven people and confiscating laptops, cameras and rally materials. 

The chair of the Bersih 2.0 organising committee, prominent lawyer Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, and Malaysian poet laureate A. Samad Said are both being investigated by police under the Sedition Act and Police Act for organising an “unlawful assembly”.

“This repression is clearly politically motivated to intimidate people from marching for electoral reform,” Guest said. “The use of repressive laws to criminalise peaceful political activism is appalling.”

Bersih 2.0 plans to hold the July 9 rally to demand a set of electoral reforms. These include fair access of all political parties to the media, reform of postal ballots and revisions of the electoral roll to address irregularities.