Electoral reform group Bersih 2.0 today said that no final decision has been made on whether it would be calling for a Bersih 5 rally.

Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah told Malaysiakini that the coalition has yet to start discussions with civil society groups, following recent developments in the United States concerning state-owned investor 1MDB.

“I didn’t call for any (rally) yet so I don’t know what he (the IGP) is responding to,” said Maria when asked for comment on inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar’s warning yesterday.

Khalid had said that Bersih 2.0 cannot hold its Bersih 5 rally if the aim was to topple Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak,

“We (Bersih 2.0) need more time. This time we plan to take it slow.

“First, we will go through the process of consultation with other civil society groups,” said Maria.

She had last week said that a rally was on the cards, following lawsuits filed by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to seize assets bought with funds allegedly siphoned from 1MDB.

Asked whether Bersih 2.0 would consider holding its rally in the nation’s centre of administration in Putrajaya instead of Kuala Lumpur, Maria said: “It depends on what we are doing it for.”

“More important to me would be the objective of the rally and not the venue,” she added.

Bersih’s most recent rally, the Bersih 4.0, attracted tens of thousands of people who had gathered in the city centre.

In the rally held on Aug 29 and 30 last year, the people had demanded for clean and fair elections, among others.

'Win-win' solution

From a Malaysian perspective, political analyst Prof Ahmad Martadha Mohamed said that a peaceful protest held inside a stadium would be the “win-win” solution for organisers and authorities.

“The government would be more responsive towards a protest held in accordance with provisions under the law. It would also create a big impact as the individuals would be free to voice their protests.

“Any objectives of Bersih 5, for example, could be achieved in a more ‘controlled’ setting,” said Martadha, Dean of Universiti Utara Malaysia’s College of Law, Government and International Studies.

Martadha also said Putrajaya would be a “more suitable” location should organisers insist on holding another street rally.

“If they insist, then maybe Putrajaya would be the better location as it is the focus for all government agencies.

“At the same time, however, there could be difficulties to attract a large crowd. If only a small crowd is involved, the impact would also be lessened,” he said.

Referring to past rallies in Kuala Lumpur, Martadha pointed out that there were security concerns raised as well as disruptions to others not involved in such protests.

“This is why I said it would be best to seek a ‘win-win’ solution,” he said.

On public demonstrations across the region and Middle East which had overturned governments and overthrown elected chief executives, Martadha cautioned that the “strategy” had led to deaths, casualties and overall instability in the countries involved.