Friday, 27 April 2012
Press Statement

We the undersigned wish to express our profound disappointment at the numerous obstacles that have been put in place by government agencies, especially the Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) and Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL), to prevent the planned peaceful gathering of Bersih 3.0 on 28 April 2012.

We recognise that these agencies are either under the direct control or influence of your government but we are sure that you, as Prime Minister, concur that they should strictly observe and practice administrative neutrality and not be seen to serve the partisan interests of the ruling parties.

It is disheartening and unacceptable to see these agencies behave in a way that is in direct contradiction to your promises of a more open democratic space for Malaysians.

We wish to emphasise that the right to assembly is guaranteed by the Federal Constitution. The only limitation is that such assembly must not be a threat to national security or to public order. There is nothing to suggest that Bersih 3.0 will be such a threat.

We also note with concern that various groups have been making threats against this planned peaceful gathering. Recent events in Dataran Merdeka where students engaged in a peaceful demonstration have been attacked by thugs show that such threats are not to be taken lightly.

You have promised a reformist agenda and we expect you to uphold your pledge. Furthermore due to your power over the bodies mentioned above, we wish to assert here that any untoward incidents instigated by any of these bodies shall be held to be your responsibility.

If you believe in democracy and clean and fair elections, now is the time to prove it. Allow Bersih 3.0 to go ahead peacefully.

Signatories

A. Bakar Sulaiman

Ahmad Farouk Musa

Dr Azmi Sharom

Kee Thuan Chye

Dr. K. J. John

Dr Lim Teck Ghee

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar

Datin Marion D’Cruz

Dato Thasleem Ibrahim

Prof Zaharom Nain