Nazri: Bersih leaders hauled up for breaking laws

The government is only hauling up leaders of the electoral reform coalition Bersih because they allegedly broke the law, and not because they call themselves ‘Bersih’, according to the de facto law minister.

"We took action because they broke the law... If they really want to be 'clean', then they should comply with the law," Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz (left)told the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time today.

Answering a supplementary question from Chow Kon Yeow (DAP-Tanjong), he said the Bersih leaders, like anyone else, have a right to call themselves by any name.

"For example I can call myself KL Gangster and no one can take me to court or stop me. It is the right of everyone to call themselves by whatever name (they choose)," he said.

However, said Nazri, the freedom for a person or group to call themselves something does not mean they can do what they want, as they must still obey the law.

Bersih steering committee co-chairs S Ambiga and A Samad Said are among individuals who have come under investigation, following their leadership of mass street protests to demand clean and fair elections.

Bersih has decried this as selective persecution and a scare tactic to intimidate and silence legitimate democratic dissent.