PDRM paints glossy image on rally fallout

The police seems to have gone on a public relations campaign to defend its actions during the Bersih 3.0 rally.

PETALING JAYA: It looks like the police have kick-started a media campaign by posting three videos on Sunday on its Facebook page, in an apparent effort to boost its image after the April 28 Bersih 3.0 rally.

In the run-up to Bersih 2.0 last year, the police was actively posting interviews with people on the street and other experts mainly condemning the event. However, police this year have adopted a ‘silent approach’ prior to Bersih 3.0, and have only now begun to freely engage in a public communications exercise.

In one video, Universiti Sains Malaysia associate professor of criminology P Sundramoorthy talked about the “lessons” learnt in Bersih 3.0, saying that when a rally becomes too big, it becomes “meaningless”.

“The lesson that needs to be learnt during the recent Bersih 3.0 event is that, when large numbers of people gather in a public place, the probability of public disorder, violence and aggression to occur is extremely high… rather than good,” he said in the four minute long video .

Sundramoorthy said Malaysians should learn, based on this experience as well as from other countries, that protests can happen but “must be in areas where authorities have given permission” so that law and order can be maintained.

“The basis for these kind of gathering is to address specific issues, but it becomes meaningless when large segments of people are gathered.

“It puts fear in other segments of society. It creates disruption to the day-to-day activities. At the end of the day, people end up with injuries and public property is damaged,” he said.

Sundramoorthy, who has 20 yearsexperience as an academician, also concluded that the majority of protesters during Bersih 3.0 were youngsters in their late teens and early 20s.

He said the values and norms in the young generation has changed drastically from what used to be values of their contemporaries 30 to 40 years ago.

“The young now, in comparison with 30 years or so, are not as mature, they are not capable in making decisions in a rational logical manner. They are easily provoked and instigated into doing things that in the end the consequences will be borne by the young persons involved, sadly not those who instigated them,” he said.

Sundramoorthy added that the young now, not just in Malaysia but other developing countries, do not respect law enforcement as much.

“What before was not acceptable, seems to be acceptable to the young now.”

Tear gas defended

Meanwhile, in two other videos, police defended the use of tear gas and water cannon during the rally, saying the chemicals not harmful to humans.

The force’s Logistics Department (Weaponry) assistant chief director ACP Syed Mustafa Raja Syed Nordin said, in a five-minute-video clip said the gas used to disperse protesters was “safe” and “complied with international standards”.

Syed Mustafa said that four different irritants were used during the rally: tear gas grenades, tear gas canisters, liquid eye irritants and pepper spray.

“All these are imported from the United States, Canada and Switzerland. Each complies with international standards set by the United Nations,” he said, adding that they contained CS Gas, which is a UN-approved riot control agent and is non-lethal.

“The CS gas is also not banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention 1993. Malaysia is one of the countries that has ratified this convention.

“I would like to stress that if PDRM had used forbidden items, the import of these items into our country would not have been allowed,” he added.