Suaram slams police presence at Bersih HQ after press conference on reforms

 

Pictures of police personnel outside the Bersih headquarters, shared by the election watchdog after a press conference on reforms yesterday.

PETALING JAYA: Human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) has hit out at the police presence outside the headquarters of election watchdog Bersih as it held a press conference on reforms yesterday.

Suaram executive director Sevan Doraisamy questioned the necessity of deploying 10 police officers, two police trucks, and multiple police motorcycles for what he described as a “mere press conference” calling for the implementation of promised reforms.

“This is not upholding public order – on the contrary, it is sheer, condemnable intimidation,” he said in a statement.

He expressed concern that criticism from netizens of the Federal Territories Pardons Board’s decision to commute Najib Razak’s sentence in the SRC International case would lead to similar actions such as the deletion of posts, monitoring of social media accounts, or potential investigations under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

“Suaram questions whether the home minister (Saifuddin Nasution Ismail) or prime minister himself (Anwar Ibrahim) is aware of the police’s act of monitoring the press conference, which adds another layer of concern to the situation,” he said.

Yesterday, Bersih said on social media that police officers had been spotted outside its office after the press conference.

It tagged Saifuddin in its post, asking if intimidation was the message the government wanted to send to the group.

The post included two pictures of a police truck and a group of individuals in blue uniforms.

At the press conference, Bersih had warned that it would not hesitate to organise street protests again if the government did not commit to its agenda for institutional and political reforms.

In his statement, Sevan also accused the government of targeting Bersih as well as former Damansara MP Tony Pua for exercising their right to freedom of expression, suggesting a pattern of intolerance towards criticism.

“They can also perpetuate censorship, which regresses current painstaking efforts by various stakeholders in fostering accountability for violations, including those of human rights,” he said.

Pua is currently being investigated for sedition over his Facebook posts about Najib’s commuted sentence and fine.

Sevan said the government’s actions amounted to a “triple betrayal” as it had not only failed in its duty to combat corruption and uphold justice, but also infringed on basic human rights.

“This derailment from the values and spirit of reformasi has gone far enough and should be immediately rectified,” he said.

“On this note, Suaram unequivocally demands that the government fully protect the right to freedom of expression and actively refrain from intimidation, harassment and any form of reprisal against all persons who exercise this fundamental freedom.” - FMT