KUALA LUMPUR, Jul 6: Hours after announcing that its July 9 rally would be held at Stadium Merdeka, the electoral reforms coalition Bersih said the stadium's operators had rejected their application.
"We were disappointed to find that the booking officer in question began providing a number of excuses as to why the booking could not be made. Among the unclear reasons provided by said officer were an 'internal management sports event' and 'renovations'," said a statement by Bersih's steering committee on its official website.
The decision to hold the rally at the stadium was made following consultation with the Agong yesterday, as well as an assurance by prime minister Najib Razak who said he had no problem with the rally being held in a stadium.
Stadium Merdeka, completed in time for Malaysia's declaration of independence in August 1957, is privately operated by Perbadanan Stadium Merdeka and owned by Permodalan Nasional Berhad, a company seen as UMNO's 'cash cow'. The 45,000-capacity stadium sits at the centre of the city and completed a major face lift in 2009..
'Witch hunt disrespect to Agong'
Saying the choice of the historic stadium reflected "the scale and centrality of this issue to Malaysians throughout the nation must be selected", Bersih stressed that it could not think of any other venue which meets the criteria.
The coalition also called on Najib to "demonstrate his sincerity" and allow the use of an appropriate stadium immediately.
"Any delay in approving the use of Stadium Merdeka can only be an unacceptable effort to further delay and frustrate our movement. We have no doubt that strong leadership by the top executive will not tolerate any procedural obstacles to a speedy approval," it added.
Meanwhile, the statement slammed the ongoing police witch hunt against Bersih activists and sympathisers throughout the country. This morning, traffic in several major roads in Klang Valley, whose rush hour traffic is legendary, came to a complete stand still following police blocks and lane closures.
Bersih said the continued crackdown against the movement smacked of disrespect to the Agong who met its key leaders yesterday.
"We are perplexed by this continuing vilification of Bersih 2.0 by the police and the AG’s chambers. Continuing to maintain that Bersih 2.0 is an illegal organisation is a direct and disrespectful contradiction by these institutions of the understanding that was reached via the good graces of DYMM SPB YDP Agong," it said.
The coalition reiterated its commitment to attain its objective of bringing about a clean and fair electoral system, and expressed its willingness to work with all parties including the government.
"We sincerely hope that the Prime Minister will remain true to his word and suffer no further delays whatsoever to honouring his word and respecting in full the spirit of agreements that have been made," it added.
Related:
Bersih's compromise: Rally at Merdeka Stadium
http://en.harakahdaily.net/index.php/berita-utama/3081-stadium-merdeka-says-no-to-bersih.html
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