About 10 Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) enforcement officers ordered protesters occupying Dataran Merdeka to dismantle their camp and "tidy up" the area about 11am today.

In response, the students moved their banners and placards on the ground closer to the site of their camp, and dismantled one tent.

NONE Another tent was also dismantled much later, leaving two tents standing.

The students were also seen moving some supplies towards the car park beneath the square.

Asked about their current position, social activist Fahmi Reza said: "They asked us to dismantle our camp, so we dismantled one (tent). But we are not going anywhere; we are staying put."

About 10 students and activists remained under close watch by the DBKL officers and about five police officers until about noon.

The students continued to chat with one another and visitors as they also sought some reprieve from the hot sun under the nearby palm trees.

Today is the fourth day of the protest by the students, who have been occupying the square since last Saturday evening in their push for free education and the abolition of the National Higher Education Fund (PTPTN).

NONE Earlier this morning, Teratai assemblyperson Jenice Lee visited them this morning, bringing with her food and drinks and words of encouragement.

Other visitors included Ooi Siew Lan, better known as Auntie Bersih, and about a dozen members of the ‘Save our Heritage’ coalition, led by Majlis Permuafakatan Perkampungan Tradisi Melayu Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur (Muafakat) chairperson Ishak Surin.

Busloads after busloads of tourists, a regular feature at Dataran Merdeka, who arrived since early morning paid little attention to the students’ camp as they went about with their sightseeing and posing for photographs in front of nearby landmarks such as the Sultan Abdul Samad building across the road.

However, some tourists also took pictures with the camp site and spoke to the protesters, while a number of motorists honked in support and gave the thumbs-up gesture as they passed.

At 6 this evening, national laureate A Samad Said is scheduled to hold a poetry session at the camp site, while at 8pm, law professor and columnist Azmi Sharom is to give a talk titled ‘Article 153 and Equality’.

The talk is part of a nightly event, dubbed ‘Universiti Dataran Merdeka’, that kicked off last night.

Yesterday, Fahmi gave a talk on ‘Democracy in Malaysia’ while PKR strategy director Rafizi Ramli spoke about how PTPTN could be abolished.

“We don’t just talk about free education. We do free education,” said Fahmi when he announced the initiative yesterday.

[More to follow]

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