The prosecution of two low-ranking police personnel for beating up a photographer during the Bersih 3.0 rally was insufficient. 

At the Dewan Rakyat today, opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (PKR-Permatang Pauh) said this was a token act, which does not address the issue of police brutality seen that day.

“It is implausible to only charge the two constables and let others higher up who are responsible go,” he said in a supplementary question to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz during question time.

NONE Nazri had earlier answered Anwar's original question that the two police constables were the only police officers charged thus far as part of government investigations into allegations of police brutality during the April 28 rally.

Allegations of excessive use of force abound after police broke up the rally, which had started off peacefully, when several participants breached a police cordon, triggering indiscriminate use of tear gas and beatings upon the over 200,000 participants and reporters on duty.

Several policemen were also injured when the crowd - sprayed with chemical water and bombarded with tear gas canisters, and hemmed in by police barricades and riot police shield walls - reacted in response.

'Too many amendments'

Before questions time began, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia had sought Nazri's explanation on the withdrawal of the amendments for the Election Offences Act from the Dewan Negara.

Nazri replied that the bill was withdrawn because there were too many amendments proposed.

"We amended the bill three times during the debate in the Dewan Rakyat, after the debate in Dewan Negara they want to amend it two more times.

"Added up that will be five amendments. If we were to allow the five amendments it would make the law meaningless.

"So after discussion with the Opposition leader and the Election Commission (EC) we decided to withdraw the bill," related the Padang Rengas MP.

He explained that the bill, despite being tabled by the government, was formulated by the EC and as such did not go through any vetting by the cabinet or the AG chambers as they cannot interfere with the workings of the "independent commission".

The amendments to the Act received much contention from the Opposition who accused the move as being an attempt to further tighten the screws of government influence over elections.

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