After a spate of arrests over the past two weeks, the candlelight vigil at a new village in Seri Kembangan tonight proceeded without a hitch heavy police presence.

The vigil outside the service centre of Serdang MP Teo Nie Ching was held to mourn the 'death of democracy' in Perak.

Although the police were out in full force with some 40 personnel, including a dozen members of light strike force, the 15-minute vigil took place without any untoward incidents.

dap supporters candle light vigil at sri kembangan 200509 01 Some 20 black T-shirt clad protesters, including Teo, DAP Teratai state representative Jenice Lee and Selangor exco Ean Yon Hian Wah were present at the vigil which commenced at 9.15pm.

The protesters carried banners and posters demanding the dissolution of the Perak state assembly to pave way for fresh elections.

There were also posters condemning the high-handed police action in arresting those involved in previous gatherings where over 120 people had been detained in the past few weeks.

The latest was last night where Teo and Lee were among 11 people arrested for illegal assembly when they staged a candlelight vigil outside the office of DAP MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok.

The move drew flak from politicians and civil society groups alike. All 11 were however released early this morning.

'Spirit of Gandhi'

In her speech tonight, Teo said the protesters were employing peaceful methods to get their point across regarding the on-going turmoil in Perak.

11 dap members candle light vigil arrest scah pc 200509 06 Meanwhile, Lee ( left ) likened the vigils to the actions of Mahatma Gandhi.

"We are following the spirit of Gandhi - using civil disobedience and non-violence to express our views," she said.

Ean, on the other hand, criticised the heavy police presence at the new village.

"This is a historical day. Since the days of emergency, we have never seen so many police personnel in this village," he said of the police who outnumbered the protesters.

He said the crime rate in Seri Kembangan had escalated in recent times, and residents here had been hoping for more police officers in their area.

"But today, we are surprised that the police have outnumbered the crowd (protesters)," he noted with sarcasm.

The protesters also observed a one-minute silence to mark the 'death of democracy'. The vigil attracted a crowd of some 50 curious onlookers and DAP supporters distributed leaflets on the situation in Perak.

dap supporters candle light vigil at sri kembangan 200509 02 At around 9.30pm, Subang Jaya police chief Zainal Rashid Abdul Bakar ordered the crowd to disperse, but by this time the vigil was nearing its end.

Teo announced that the protesters would disperse peacefully. She also expressed gratitude to the police for allowing them the 15-minute grace period to hold the vigil.

"Compared to the Brickfields police yesterday, the Subang Jaya police have handled the situation in a polite and matured manner," she said.