Rally to topple gov't and we'll retaliate, Pesaka warns

The National Silat Federation (Pesaka) chief Mohd Ali Rustam said the Himpunan Rakyat Bersatu rally last Wednesday succeed in sending a message to non-Malays not to insult them anymore.

He warned that while Malay groups cannot stop anti-government demonstrations according to law, any rally meant to topple the government will be met with retaliation.

“We cannot do anything if they assembly peacefully and follow the law, but if they demonstrate so they can topple the government, we will gather again in a peaceful manner, and ‘whack’ (sic) them,” he said in an interview with Mingguan Malaysia today.

Asked what the rally had achieved the former Umno vice president said it showed that Malays are brave and will not take insults to their leaders lying down.

He said as silat practitioners, they are supposed to safeguard the nation and the community from such insults and the rally was to send a warning message.

“May this act as a reminder. The next time they want to insult us, they will remember that we will retaliate against them.

“Don’t think they can just stomp (on pictures of Malay leaders) here and there. Do they think we have no dignity?

“There are Malays who ask me what I mean by dignity. A picture of PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang was stomped on, isn’t this an affront to our dignity? A picture of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak stomped on, not an affront to dignity?” he asked.

'Melayu balik kampung'

He claimed that the Bersih 4 rally – attended mostly by the ethnic Chinese to call for the resignation of Najib amid corruption allegations – was a way to tell Malays to “balik kampung" (go back to the villages).

“They try to show that Kuala Lumpur belongs to Bersih and the DAP gang, and Malays should go back to the villages. But now the villagers are coming to Kuala Lumpur.

“They think we have lost our self-worth and that Kuala Lumpur does not belong to various races. They think Malays don’t belong to Kuala Lumpur, and it is only for DAP and Bersih.

“They try to show they are brave and that Malays are not. They held rallies four times, and yet no Malays were brave enough to fight back,” he said.

He, however, noted that this does not mean Malays want bloodshed.

Instead, Pesaka opted for the “middle path”, by gathering to show their strength through a collected voice.

He also denounced those involved in the scuffles at the Petaling Street entrance at Sept 16, when protestors insisted to enter the traditionally Chinese area.

Two protestors were arrested, while several protestors and police officers sustained minor injuries in the standoff.

Mohd Ali said the group was not part of Pesaka and must face the brunt of the law.

While he did not say so, Mohd Ali’s view of the Bersih 4 rally is reminiscent of the post-election victory rally held by majority-Chinese political parties on May 12, 1969.

The rally participants reportedly told Malay bystanders to “go back to their villages”, leading to race riots on May 13, 1969.

Bersih 4 was to among others call for clean governance, clean and fair elections and Najib’s resignation amid corruption claims.

While most of Bersih 4 participants were Chinese, it was also attended by those of other races including Malays.

At least 100,000 people attended the 34-hour Bersih 4 rally on Aug 29 and Aug 30, while 45,000 people attended the Himpunan Rakyat Bersatu.

Dozens of buses from outside Kuala Lumpur carried participants to the Sept 16 rally, some from as far as Kelantan. -Mkini