Political Struggle in Malaysia Heats Up

New York Times,By THOMAS FULLER,

May 7, 2009
BANGKOK — In an extraordinary day that was part wrestling match, part democratic process, Malaysia’s governing party appeared to retake control of a major state legislature on Thursday when a group of unidentified men dragged the assembly speaker out of the hall and escorted the governing party’s choice to the empty seat.

Police arrested Malaysian opposition lawmaker Tian Chua as he arrived at the Perak state legislature in the northwestern city of Ipoh on Thursday.

The bare-knuckled proceedings, in the state of Perak, underlined the continued deep and bitter divisions between the country’s embattled governing party and a resurgent opposition. But they also showed the limits imposed by technology on the mildly authoritarian ways of Malaysia’s government.

Reports from the assembly hall streamed out over mobile phones, the Internet and Twitter.

Khalil Idham Lim, an opposition assembly member, blogged throughout the heated exchanges and posted pictures, including one of the speaker in hauled away .

Malaysia’s independent news Web sites offered minute-by-minute updates. “If this event had taken place 10 years ago, people might never have known what really transpired inside the assembly,” said Ibrahim Suffian, director of the Merdeka Center, an independent polling agency.

The country’s newspapers and television stations are closely monitored by the government and generally toe the line of the governing party, the United Malays National Organization. But high-tech gadgetry is widespread in Malaysia, which is home to many factories that make components for mobile phones and computers.

“This is really going to strain the legitimacy of the state government,” Mr. Ibrahim said. “Fair-minded people will find it very difficult to accept the way in which they took over.”

Malaysiakini.com reported that at 12:41 p.m. “plainclothes personnel” dragged out the speaker, V. Sivakumar. “It cannot be ascertained if these were police personnel,” the Web site said. “Sivakumar resists and shouts, ‘I am the legal speaker. Why am I being treated like this?”’ the site reported.

At least eight opposition members of Parliament who had come to support Mr. Sivakumar were arrested by the police as well as about 60 other opposition supporters, according to the reports by news Web sites and news services. Many Web sites showed photos taken by mobile phone of the members of Parliament being led away in handcuffs.

The police banned protests within 500 meters of the legislature in Ipoh. They also confiscated boxes of black shirts that protesters were urged to wear.

The deadlock over the Perak state legislature began in February, when the governing party orchestrated the defection of three members of the assembly and claimed control over Perak, one of the country’s largest states. The opposition called for fresh elections and is contesting the takeover in the courts.

The defections were masterminded by Najib Razak, a member of the governing party who became the country’s prime minister last month. Soon after assuming office, Mr. Najib said his government would be “more transparent, responsible and focused on prioritizing the people.” He also vowed to promote “a vibrant, free and informed media” and lifted a ban on two opposition-run publications.

But opposition leaders say they see no sign that Mr. Najib will rescind laws that allow, among other things, the government to jail critics indefinitely without trial.

On Tuesday the spokesman of a group that advocates cleaner election practices, Wong Chin Huat, was arrested and charged with sedition. The next day, the police arrested eight people who took part in a candlelight vigil for him.

“The police, particularly the present inspector general of police,” are clearly biased, Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the opposition, said in a telephone interview Thursday. Mr. Anwar called the takeover in Perak “a complete disregard for the democratic process” and reiterated his call for elections in the state.

“We still believe the correct decision is to let the people decide,” he said. Mr. Anwar has been charged with sodomy in a highly politicized case and is due to appear in court in July.

Q+A-What does the Malaysian standoff in Perak mean?

07 May 2009 03:49:34 GMT

Source: Reuters

(For the main accompanying story, click on [ID:nKLR431444]) By David Chance KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 (Reuters) - Malaysian police arrested at least a dozen anti-government protesters in Ipoh, the capital of the northwestern state of Perak on Thursday at a rally to coincide with the first sitting of the state assembly since the state government was ousted in February. Perak was one of five of Malaysia's 13 states ruled by the opposition until a putsch organised by Najib Razak, who became prime minister a month ago. Here are some of the questions and answers about what the protest could signal: WHY PERAK? The ousting of the state government appeared to be an attempt by Najib, who was then deputy prime minister, to show he would be a strong leader and came just a few months before he took power, replacing Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. It came after a series of by-election losses for the coalition that has ruled Malaysia for 51 years. The Perak takeover has a powerful mix of race, religion and Malaysia's royals. The Islamist opposition has even accused the new chief minister of using black magic, which he denies, and the takeover is subject to court action. A PERFECT STORM BREWING? Malaysia's politics are becoming increasingly bitter and the opposition questions Najib's character and his ability to deliver reforms on racial equality and the economy. Tensions look set to remain high with opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim due to appear in court in July on what he says are trumped up sodomy charges. Anwar was deputy prime minister until he was imprisoned in the late 1990s for sodomy and corruption. His jailing caused tens of thousands of people to protest and united the reformist opposition that is challenging the National Front's hegemony. IS MALAYSIA THE NEXT THAILAND No. Street protests are not widespread and the National Front has a firm grip on all state institutions as well as a wide range of laws to punish dissenters, including detention without trial. For all that, simmering discontent between the majority Malays and smaller ethnic Chinese and Indian communities has broken out into street protests in the past and the recent series of arrests for sedition has ended any hopes that Najib could undertake serious political reforms to unite the country. WHY SHOULD IT MATTER TO INVESTORS? Reforming Malaysia's race-based political system is one of the keys to unlocking economic reforms. A system of economic and social privileges for Malays has been blamed by many for hurting the country's competitiveness and fostering corruption. With rising political tensions, Najib may not be able to reform without risking a backlash from Malays, the core voter base of his party, the United Malays National Organisation. Malaysian bonds yield more than those in Thailand, largely reflecting the country's rising budget deficit and bond issuance. Malaysian five year paper yields 3.813 percent against 2.55 percent for 5-year Thai debt despite the country's A-credit rating compared with Thailand's BBB-rating. Malaysia wants to attract more foreign investment, especially in the services sector so as to reduce its reliance on exports. The country is the third most export-dependent economy in Asia and has been hit hard by the global economic downturn. There has been some relaxation in rules that stipulate ethnic Malays must own 30 percent of certain businesses. Moves so far have been to avoid antagonising Malays at a time when the country is entering its worst downturn since the 1998 Asian crisis. (Editing by David Fox)