It has all the drama of one of those reformasi protests years ago - protestors kicked and beaten, water cannons fired into the crowd and scores arrested as stunned shoppers looked on.

At the end of the two-hour protest today, which took place under the shadow of the iconic Petronas Twin Towers, 22 people were handcuffed and trucked to the police station.

Those arrested were part of a 1,500-strong crowd led by the umbrella body of the country's workers unions, the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC), and a number of opposition political parties to protest against the recent sharp hike in petrol prices.

Among those arrested were PAS central committee member Dr Hatta Ramli and his two daughters - nine-year-old Amirah and 17-year-old Atiqah.

When the demonstration - the third of its kind this month - kicked off at 10.10 this morning, the police warned the protestors that it was an illegal gathering and the crowd was given 10 minutes to disperse.

MTUC leaders - president Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud and secretary-general G Rajasekaran ( photo, left ) - proceeded to give speeches slamming the price hike in fuel and other essential items. They were followed by speeches from a number of opposition leaders from PKR and PAS.

However, when the 10 minutes were about to come to an end, Dangi Wangi deputy district police chief Mohd Rodzi Ismail issued instructions to 50-odd federal reserve unit members and 100 police officers to prepare themselves to stop the rally.

The red-helmeted riot police, who were armed with batons, rifles and shields, went into formation and they were backed by water-cannon trucks as well as a dozen of police on horseback and a number of dogs.

The crowd then move away from Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) where the Petronas Twin Towers are located.

Kicked and beaten

They marched towards Jalan Sultan Ismail carrying banners as well as black balloons symbolising oil and inflation, and shouting anti-fuel hike and reformasi slogans. When they reached Jalan P Ramlee about 50 metres away, the crowd began to turn back to KLCC.

The police went back on alert, with some of them rushing to the KLCC entrance to stop the first 100-odd protestors from going inside the shopping complex.

This was when a scuffle broke out between the crowd and the police, with one protestor, 49-year old Hamid Bahrawy, violently wrestled to the ground by half a dozen police officers.

As a handcuffed Hamid emerged from the fray, a large swollen bruise was seen on his forehead from being hit by a police baton.

Several other protestors were also seen being beaten and kicked by the police as stunned shoppers looked on.

Twelve people were arrested in this first batch of arrests and taken to the Pudu police station at nearby Jalan Hang Tuah.

The rest of the crowd continued to congregate along Jalan Ampang, opposite of KLCC.

According to AFP , the police then used a water cannon to disperse demonstrators, who scrambled across a paved forecourt in front of the towers to continue their rally.

For over two hours protesters repeatedly dispersed to mingle with onlookers, but then gathered again in small groups near the towers only to be chased by police.

Police finally pointed a water cannon at shocked shoppers and tourists outside the Twin Towers and at an exclusive mall across the street to clear the roads, before the protest petered out.

'Symbol of oppression'

"KLCC is no longer a symbol of Malaysia. It is now a symbol of oppression," said DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng at the KLCC entrance when commenting on the police behaviour.

"Malaysia is not a model of democracy. It is a model of tyranny," he added.

PAS vice-president Mohamad Sabu said the police action today showed that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was no more liberal than his predecessor.

"It just goes to show that things have not changed," he said.

"When the petrol price goes up, all our essential goods go up," K Brabakarun, a MTUC vice-president told AFP .

"There's a limit. Workers can't afford a price increase against their salaries so we are telling the government," he added.

A second group of about eight protestors were arrested at about 12.30pm. Among them were Hatta and his two daughters ( right ) who were demonstrating near Ampang Park, about 150 metres from KLCC

Also arrested with Hatta was PAS Muslimat (women's wing) leader Aiman Athirah Al-Jundi.

Youngest protestor

At the Pudu police station, a crowd of supporters gathered at around 2.30pm and took immediate steps to seek the release of those arrested.

"I am completely disappointed with the police action against the demonstrators," PKR information chief Tian Chua said.

According to him, this was the largest group of protestors arrested since the reformasi demonstrations in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The supporters milled around the entrance of the police station until about 5pm when the first detainees were released, and they were greeted with shouts of 'reformasi'..

By about 5.30pm, everybody had been released on police bail.

Nine-year-old Amirah was lauded for being among the youngest reformasi protestor ever to have been placed with her father in detention.

One of those arrested, Khairul Anuar, said he and a number of others would file police reports for being assaulted during their arrest.

"I was slapped by one female police officer who told me I was talking too much. She covered my mouth to keep me from talking. I spat into it," said PKR member Salmah Abdul Rashid, who was also among those arrested.

According to their lawyers, those claiming to have been assaulted would be taken to the hospital for a medical check-up.

The protestors will be holding a press conference on the police crackdown in Parliament tomorrow morning. This will be held together with a planned gathering of 1,000 MTUC members to submit a memorandum on the fuel hike to the prime minister.

"What the police have done today is to show the government is desperate to disperse all these forms of demonstrations so we must go on to fight," PAS official Zulkifli Ahmad told AFP .

Photos by Colin Nicholas and Jack Ooi.

PHOTO GALLERY