Yellow is royal, ‘hysterical’ Hisham told

An opposition leader slams the home minister, saying his yellow phobia has turned him into another Hosni Mubarak.

TAIPING: Following his arrest yesterday morning, a PKR leader lashed out at Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, saying he is suffering from yellow phobia over the Bersih 2.0 rally scheduled for July 9.

Perak PKR deputy chief Dr Lee Boon Chye added that the home minister had turned into Hosni Mubarak, the former president of Egypt, by making arbitrary decisions.

“Why must he get hysterical and have a phobia when yellow is our royal colour?” he asked.

“He cannot become judge and executioner in proclaiming that Bersih is illegal… after all, he is only a minister and cannot override the supremacy of the Federal Constitution which guarantees the freedom to assemble peacefully,” he added.

“He has become another Hosni Mubarak, deciding arbitrarily what is right and wrong without following the constitution,” he told FMT.

A vexed Lee also challenged Hishammuddin to state the law that denied Malaysians the right to peaceful assembly.

Yesterday, the PKR leader said, he had worn an ordinary yellow T-shirt while his party colleague, Simpang Pulai assemblyperson Chan Ming Kai was clad in a Bersih 2.0T-shirt, when the two had gone to the Gunung Rapat wet market here with other party members to meet residents.

According to Lee, when he alighted from his car, “some 100 policemen” surrounded him and the others.

Without giving the reason for their arrests, they were bundled into a police van and taken to the Ipoh district police headquarters to have their statements recorded.

Later, Lee and the others were told that they were arrested for intending to hold an illegal assembly at the market.

‘Crime rate soars as police work for Umno’

“What is wrong with wearing yellow T- shirts? It is our democratic right to wear what we want! Don’t tell me the police have now come up with a code of dressing for Malaysians ?” he asked.

Lee accused the police of diverting from their duty as protector of the public, and becoming the political tool of Umno to crush public dissent.

“Is the home ministry giving top priority to arresting people who wear yellow instead of going after criminals at large?” he said.

Meanwhile, PKR state vice-chairman Chang Lih Kang defended the Bersih rally.

“The rally is totally constitutional and any attempt to crack down on the participants is an infringement of human rights and we will become the laughing stock of the whole world,” he said.

He claimed that the crime rate in the country was increasing since the police were busy fulfilling political agendas.

On Wednesday, Chang, DAP Jalong assemblyperson Leong Mee Meng and 12 other Pakatan Rakyat supporters were arrested by police for wearing the yellow Bersih T-shirts at the Sungai Siput wet market.

They were released later in the day after the police had recorded their statements.