I refer to Ong BC's letter and his serf mentality to Barisan Nasional (Stop street demos, April 25). What is wrong when Keadilan goes to the streets to demonstrate peacefully? Protesters have been beaten mercilessly by riot police or shot at with acid-laced water. That is why you see the odd protester kicking a police car or overturning a dustbin, but that does not constitute violence.

But the mainstream media brands such pictures as 'violence' during the countdown to the 1999 general elections. And simple-minded people buy this line of 'reasoning'.

I lived in Australia for six years. There is almost always a peaceful demonstration each week in Perth, Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne. But the country has never descended into chaos. Indonesia experienced the very opposite - it bottled up dissent for 30 years, brutally oppressed dissenters and when the crap eventually hits the fan, the country descends into anarchy.

Mahathirian Malaysia seems to have emulated Indonesia's brand of 'feudal loyalty'-type politics, albeit of a dressed-down sort.

Whilst Singapore is something of an autocracy, civil servants found guilty of corruption and embezzlement face severe punishments.

Here in Malaysia, I am under the impression it's the direct opposite. Crooks, some from the executive backed by the great leader, are pleased to act as they please including rape, murder, accept bribes, etc. With virtual impunity.

Violence is more easily defined as Barisan Nasional Youth storming a non-governmental organisation forum on the plight of the East Timorese (before East Timor's independence); using gangster intimidation against the Sungai Siput opposition candidate; the former chief of police beating Anwar Ibrahim senseless; police beating suspects (sometimes to death) to extract confessions; injustice when you see the rakyat 's money used to bail out top ministers' kids and cronies or to build white elephants (or kickback projects); practice of massive corruption with seeming impunity; and a judiciary partial to the executive.

With educated, empowered, ruthless conmen running the show, peaceful demonstrations are a must to allow the people an avenue to show their grievances. Dr Mahathir Mohamad and company have violated peaceful avenues of dissent, i.e. polls and media by manipulation of electorates; denying young voters their right to vote (so much for the digital era); using phantom voters; gerrymandering of security personnel votes; revoking printing licences; banning and limiting circulation of critical publications; and abuse of the Official Secrets Act and the Internal Secrets Act.

Politicians are elected to serve the people. We, the rakyat , owe them nothing. If the average Malaysian thinks like the writer, I fear many of us Malaysians are no better than brainless bovines being corralled into a slaughter house.

As I said, in Australia not a week goes by without peaceful demonstrations. That is real democracy. Has Australia or the United States then degenerated into economic turmoil? Why has the Indonesian economy imploded? Because of economic ruin brought about by massive corruption, cronyism.