A miracle happened on July 9, 2011

My foray into rallies and protest marches started during the hey days of the 'Reformasi' Movement in the late nineties. However my first big march was the Bersih 1.0 rally, in November 2007, which drew around 40,000 people. The rally was marred by the police and I was caught in a crossfire of tear gas canisters near Masjid Jamek. I managed to retreat and joined the crowd in our march to Istana Negara to hand a memorandum to the King. Hindraf organised a march later that month and subsequently, in the 2008 general election, the BN lost its largest share of votes since 1957.

Like many others who had written so many heartwarming stories of their experiences of Bersih 2.0, I too had many misgivings on the eve of the march. The unbelievable campaign of terror, fear and intimidation by the government and extremist groups like PERKASA was enough to scare anyone from even thinking of participating.

However the Organising Committee of Bersih 2.0 and organisations like Lawyers for Liberty, SUHAKAM and other NGOs convinced me that the right to peaceful protest is enshrined in the Malaysian Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and numerous other international human rights instruments. I told myself that no PM, IGP or Home Minister can decree otherwise and deny our right to peaceful assembly.

Anwar injured, July 9 black eye for Najib

The opposition leader was injured when the police fired tear gas. And observers warn Najib of electoral repercussions.

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and several Pakatan Rakyat leaders were injured when the police fired tear gas at the group of Bersih 2.0 supporters that they were leading.

Full list of 91 barred from KL on July 9 incl Ambiga, Anwar, Hadi, Kit Siang

The police have obtained a restriction order preventing 91 people, including Bersih organisers, Patriot/Umno Youth and Perkasa from entering the city central business district on Saturday.

The order is to stop any of the 91 from being present at several spots in Kuala Lumpur on July 9.

Hisham raises eyebrows, warns Khairy to scrap July 9 rally plans

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein raised eyebrows when he said the plan by UMNO Youth Chief Khairy Jamaluddin to hold a rally on July 9 to counter the Bersih 2.0 gathering did not reflect UMNO's stand.

"How can that be? Is he saying UMNO Youth is a renegade wing, what is happening there?" Gopeng MP Lee Boon Chye told Malaysia Chronicle.

Indeed, the strength of Hisham's warning has raised doubts on whether Khairy's decision had the backing of the Youth committee or if it was "lone-ranger" effort. So far, Khairy has not commented on Hisham's warning.

At a press conference on Friday, Hisham reiterated that any rally held without a police permit was illegal, and if UMNO Youth took part, those who were caught would have to face the consequences.

“When it comes to that, it doesn’t matter whether I’m former Youth chief or not. They will have to face whatever consequences [for] their action… and it’s purely Pemuda’s stand,” Hisham told reporters.

“They will have to deal with the police. I expect the police to do the same with the three rallies. We are looking it at a legal standpoint. Nobody is above the law. That’s always been my position.”

Slap in the face

Khairy had announced late Thursday that the Youth would hold a rally on the same day to “strengthen the democratic system”. But although his group plans to use the same route as the Bersih march, he said it will not join the Bersih rally.

He also stressed that unlike Bersih, which is holding the peacful gathering to highlight the need for electoral reform, UMNO Youth supported the existing system.

The third group planning to march on July 9 is ultra Malay rights group Perkasa, which wants Bersih to cancel its rally.

While both UMNO Youth and its sister unit unit Perkasa have insisted their basis for choosing the same day as Bersih was due to their love for democracy, pundits suspect they were out to cause trouble and pressure election watchdog body to cancel.

"No, we have no plans at all to cancel. Everything is systems go," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.

"We won't be deterred by all the sandiwara from UMNO. It's a waste of time. Bersih is not a Pakatan show although we support it strongly. The people are the ones who have a message to express, otherwise they won't attend. What they want is free, fair and clean elections. That's all, why come down so hard on them."

Prime Minister Najib Razak sees the Bersih's Walk for Democracy as a slap in the face for his leadership. The rally is supported by most of the NGOs in the country as well as the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition.

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