E-voting demo: 2 students, journalist picked up
Two students and a journalist were detained by the police today for failing to disperse at a protest against e-voting in front of the Higher Education Ministry building in Putrajaya.
Two students and a journalist were detained by the police today for failing to disperse at a protest against e-voting in front of the Higher Education Ministry building in Putrajaya.
The students were Mohd Shazni Munir Mohd Itnin, president of Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM) and Mohd Syaharudeen Mohd Rosli.
Mohd Shayarudeen was released soon after.
The journalist from Harakah, Zainul Faqar Yaacob, was arrested for allegedly 'posing' as a journalist. After four hours, both were released. 
According to Zainul, the duo are now being investigated under Section 186 of the Penal Code for obstructing an officer on duty.
The incident started when some 50 students gathered in front of the ministry to protest against the e-voting system for the campus polls and refused to disperse despite repeated orders from the police.
About 30 police personnel, including members of the light strike force, were deployed to control the situation.
The students had gathered there to "explicitly" show their discontent over the e-voting system in order to "restore democracy in campuses.”
'Mission 10' launched
In a statement distributed to the press, the students revealed that they have also launched 'Mission 10' to ensure that campus elections are held without fear or favour. 
The statement was endorsed by SMM, Gabungan Mahasiswa Islam SeMalaysia (Gamis), Pro-Mahasiswa Nasional, Majlis Perwakilan Mahasiswa Nasional (MPMN), Kesatuan Aktivis Mahasiswa Independen (Kami), Malaysia Youth and Student Democratic Movement (Dema) and Gabungan Mahasiswa Bantah E-voting (Bantah).
"Undergraduates must be acknowledged as the next generation in our nation’s leadership. The independence and rights of students should not be curtailed," read the statement. 
Mohd Syaharudeen (left) said they initially intended to come with 200 students.
"We oppose the e-voting system, but if it needs to be implemented, it should be done with conditions, like in UIA (University Islam Antarabangsa) which ensures transparency and fairness.
"Right now there is a lot of concern with the e-voting system, for example, it can be technically manipulated. No system is perfect, so we would rather maintain the manual vote. It is a little slower but can guarantee transparency and fairness," he said.
'Disappointed with threats'
Kami president Hilman added that they were disappointed as they were unable to to present the memorandum to Higher Education Minister Khaled Noordin.
"We are also disappointed with the threats made against students, and the detention of students. It reflects the administration's attitude towards student freedom," he said. 
Mohd Shazni stressed that today’s protest is the first of more to come until democracy is upheld.
"There has been abuse in the system, which is inconsistent with normal practices of justice. For example, a referendum was made against e-voting but the administration is still going ahead with it.
"In UKM (University Kebangsaan Malaysia), the abuse takes place when certain candidates are not given space to speak. A speakers' corner was launched there and yet these students have been stopped form utilising it," he said.
"We want to give a signal to the Ministry of Higher Education so that they can see that we are serious about integrity and transparency on campus," he added.
Prior to the arrest, five representatives from the group were allowed to meet with ministry officials to submit their memorandum.
According to Hilman, the students had collected 5,000 signatures to declare their dissatisfaction.
