Video shows Jamal in Bersih scuffle

Bersih's Maria Chin Abdullah says Red Shirts leader caused the fracas, but Jamal says Bersih people started pushing and shoving.

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PETALING JAYA: The Bersih electoral reform group has posted a video showing a scuffle between its activists and supporters of the Red Shirts movement supporters, led by the movement’s leader Jamal Yunos, in Teluk Intan, Perak.

The video, lasting 1m 37s, was posted on the Bersih 2.0 page on Facebook.

A standoff between Bersih activists and the Red Shirts supporters can be seen.

At first, Bersih activists are seen talking to Jamal and his Red Shirts followers, but things get out of hand when Jamal snatches a banner from the Bersih activists.

The scuffle takes place very close to a police van, and people can be heard calling for the police to step in and within a few moments, the scuffle comes to an end.

Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah accused Jamal of having caused the scuffle when he attacked a Bersih activist. However, Jamal, who is Sungai Besar Umno division chief, denied Maria’s allegation.

Maria told FMT that the Teluk Intan police had blocked the Red Shirts supporters from coming near the Bersih activists. While the two parties were negotiating, Jamal launched his attack.

Maria said that a police officer there witnessed Jamal’s attack and that Jamal should have been arrested on the spot.

She added that Umno should reprimand Jamal and purge the party of members who acted like thugs, lest they wanted to be seen as condoning such behaviour.

However, Jamal gave FMT a different story, denying Maria’s allegations that he had attacked anyone.

“They had marched from the Amanah office in Teluk Intan, with placards and banners and shouting slogans,” he said, adding that the activists were also handing out pamphlets which he said was filled with lies about the government.

“We stood in their way and refused to budge, that is when they started pushing and shoving.”

Jamal said that he was ever ready to cooperate with the police should there be an investigation into the fracas.

Earlier today, it was reported that the Bersih 5 convoy in Lumut, Perak, was harassed by Red Shirts supporters on motorcycles, who screamed at the convoy and even hit the windows of the cars the activists were in.

Jamal however denied ever instructing Red Shirts supporters to use violence, and said that he could not control the anger of the Red Shirts supporters.

In another video shared by Bersih 2.0 Official’s Facebook page, a car that activist Hishamuddin Rais was in appeared to have been harassed by a group of red shirt men on bikes in Lumut.

One of the bikers took to ripping off a Bersih flag draped outside the car Hishamuddin was travelling in with three other people.

Earlier this week Jamal had launched “Merah V2” — a campaign aimed at countering the Bersih 5 convoys, being flagged off at various towns and cities to publicise the Berish 5 rally in November.

Jamal said members of the Red Shirts movement were set to “descend” on all locations announced by Bersih 2.0.

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