PKR Wanita: Hisham has committed treason
PKR’s Wanita wing today accused Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein of committing treason against the Agong for insisting that Bersih 2.0 is still an illegal organisation.
Wanita chief Zuraidah Kamaruddin said the minister had insisted on outlawing Bersih 2.0 at a time when the Agong had apparently consented to the movement's rally in a stadium.
"Pushing the police to continue with the crackdown is biadap (insolent). It was clear the Agong gave his consent for the peaceful assembly.
"Hishammuddin should abide by it, being a Malay and a Malaysian," she said at a press conference at the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya today.
Zuraidah also lashed out at Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak for an apparent flip-flop over his handling of the issue over the past two days.
She said Najib appears to be distancing himself from the debacle, which only proves that he is a weak leader who bows to the will and bully tactics of the ministers in his administration.
"This raises the question: who has more power? The Agong, Najib or Hisham?" she said.
At the same press conference, PKR Wanita vice-chief Haniza Tahar said that Najib cannot cop out of his responsibility over his offer for the Bersih 2.0 rally to be held in a stadium.
She stressed that the authorities' recent actions, especially Hishammuddin's explicit support of the police crackdown, have made Malaysia appear to the world as if it is unwilling to give space for public opinion.
"These are (the) traitors. A minister can challenge the decision of the Agong. This is a violation of the Agong's right in seeking a wise decision to settle a problem faced by the rakyat.
"I urge all parties, regardless of which side they are on, to demand that Hisham stand down and abide by the Agong's decision," she said.
'Trouble makers to be given protection'
Zuraidah, who later launched PKR Wanita's 'Teruskan Bersih' campaign, stressed that they will not be cowed by the government's intimidation and bully tactics and that they are fully behind Bersih 2.0's decision to proceed with the rally at Merdeka Stadium this Saturday.
The Ampang MP added that they are aware of talk that the ruling BN coalition would plant troublemakers among Bersih 2.0 protesters to disrupt the peaceful gathering.
She said it was "very stupid" of Najib to declare members of the Silat Lincah movement as the nation's third line of defence, saying that not only is this a total snub of the nation's system of governance but also an alleged clarion call for subversive elements to interrupt the rally.
"(It is) as if he is signalling those who will kotorkan Bersih (sully Bersih, those who will cause trouble) will be those in cahoots with BN. I think he (Najib) will give them protection if they get in trouble."
Zuraidah claimed their concerns of trouble are not helped by allegations that BN had already printed some 300,000 Bersih 2.0 T-shirts in Thailand, to be distributed to agent provocateurs who will be planted among genuine protesters.
"We told our people to be careful with those they don't know and to monitor the situation," she said.
'Walk the talk'
Zuraidah stressed that the onus is now on the government to live up to its international pledge to uphold human rights and help make sure the Bersih 2.0 rally is held without incident.
"Malaysia is a confused country. We are democratic, we sign human rights laws internationally but we don't respect or implement them. Human rights laws are ratified simply as a smokescreen."
Asked to comment on the announcement by the Public Land Transport Commission that no temporary permits will be issued for bus travel from other Peninsular states into the Klang Valley, Zuraidah said it is not a surprise.
“The government is willing to lose money. They are going to stop the LRT on the ninth, they are willing to lose money for the country just because they are afraid of Bersih.
"People who are afraid of Bersih are orang kotor (dirty people), lah," she said.
