MP SPEAKS Sometimes it suffices to say that the Malaysian government wants to organise the body politic in a manner that serves the interests of the ruling elite and their cronies.

But it's this same ambition, or rather greed, which triggered massive protests across Africa, the Middle East and Europe.

Now, why am I saying this?

azlan In Malaysia, we have an array of preventive laws including the draconian Internal Security Act, which allows for detention without trial, to silence dissidents.

Media organisations have to toe editorial lines blatantly dictated by Umno leaders. Any editor or journalist who dares to push the boundaries is subjected to internal investigations or faces the sack.

We are said to be a democratic nation but clearly with reservations.

For example, the police can use violence to break up peaceful rallies because the gathering of more than four people constitutes an illegal assembly. Furthermore, they enjoy absolute power or we would not have mounting cases of trigger-happy cops or deaths in police custody.

Clearly, government institutions and preventive laws are used to keep the society in the grip of the ruling elite. No one is allowed to question them and those who were brave enough to do so are severely penalised.

Precisely for these reasons, we need a clean electoral system which enables the rakyat to exercise their voting rights to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the government and make durable changes.

azlan Free and fair elections are fundamental aspects of a vibrant democracy. The people are entitled to vote in a system based on integrity, as opposed to one open to abuses including vote-buying, gerrymandering, vote-rigging and phantom voting.

The recent elections in Sarawak caricatured rampant vote-buying, particularly in rural and poor areas.

In short, there must be no manipulation from the government to ensure their longevity in politics. And election results must tally with the will of the people. In Malaysia, this is hardly the case.

With this in mind, I pledge my support for Bersih 2.0, a coalition of 62 NGOs which focuses on meaningful electoral reform to ensure that peoples' voting rights are not marred by unscrupulous politicians and an unequal system.

Bersih has lobbied the Election Commission (EC) to reform postal voting, use indelible ink, clean up the electoral roll, allow all parties access to the media and introduce a minimum 21-day campaign period.

The EC has strongly resisted any idea of reform. In fact, recent media reports indicate that it has closed its doors to Bersih 2.0 permanently.

Complaints lodged against vote-buying during the Sarawak elections were also dismissed in nonchalant fashion.

Bully-boy tactics

All this entrenches the notion that government institutions are structured to back the rich and powerful, to ensure they are able to maintain their dominant position in society.

ibrahim ali press conference at his home in taman melawati Weeks before the Bersih 2.0 rally scheduled for July 9, we have heard the responses of Umno Youth as well as Perkasa leader Ibrahim Ali (left) , who doesn't miss any opportunity for self-promotion.

Both organisations have condemned the rally and are planning simultaneous protests to pledge loyalty to the existing electoral process.

We welcome their rallies as their freedom to assemble and express themselves, as this forms the crux of any democratic nation.

What we denounce are the lies they spread about Bersih 2.0. The propaganda is cleverly tailored to tarnish the credible effort by the coalition. It's about time that Umno and Perkasa understand that criticising government policies does not in any way project disloyalty to the country.

Deputy premier Muhyiddin Yassin has gone on a verbal tirade to allege that the Bersih 2.0 rally is an attempt to topple the government. Information, Communications and Culture minister Rais Yatim has expressed belief that the recent attacks on local and government websites were linked to the planned rally.

These are false and unproven allegations aimed at confusing the public.

bersih rally istana negara tv 101107 large crowd Thousands took to the streets in Novermber 2007 to call for electoral reforms. Tens of thousands will, again, brave water cannons and the anti-riot police to show their displeasure at a repressive regime.

We have heard the police speak - they have warned protestors and threatened the organisers with pre-emptive arrests. I see this as an expression of fear by the ruling government.

Let's hope that the police will not work on these threats, which are nothing but bully-boy tactics to silence valid dissent in the country. It's shameless behaviour to go to the mat on behalf of the government.

Instead of using force to clamp down on the organisers and protestors, the government must listen to the aspirations of the people.

After all, that is what premier Najib Abdul Razak repeats like a mantra. His ‘People First’ slogan will become even more meaningless if the citizens get clubbed by the police for taking part in a peaceful assembly.

CHARLES SANTIAGO is the DAP member of parliament for Klang.