Cycle for change
Grassroots coalition Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (Jerit) is riding the unique route to advocating change - by cycling across the country.
The ‘People the force of change’ campaign will be Jerit’s way of raising awareness about issues like food shortage, global food shortage, environmental problems, draconian laws and the financial crisis etc - in a eco-friendly way to boot.
The ‘People the force of change’ campaign will be Jerit’s way of raising awareness about issues like food shortage, global food shortage, environmental problems, draconian laws and the financial crisis etc - in a eco-friendly way to boot.
Some 150 expected participants will pedal away from Dec 3 from three points, traversing the country in a ride of goodwill and promoting awareness of issues.
Entrants will be from all parts of the country, and they intend to reach Kuala Lumpur on Dec 18, and end at Parliament.
The group will then hand over their memorandum of demands to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim.
The cycling campaign was inspired by class struggles of Bukit Asahan estate workers in Malacca in the 1970s, who then marched to Kuala Lumpur to meet the prime minister to resolve their problems.
The like to raise awareness on Jerit’s cry for amendments to the Minimum Wages Act 1948, housing, control consumer prices and to stop privatisations of water, hospitals and schools, among others.
"The cyclists would be going through small towns and major cities in every states and they would be handing out leaflets as well spread awareness about issues that areaffecting the public," said Jerit coordinator Y Kohila.
"A memorandum would be handed to the leaders of the states," said Kohila.
The events which is open all, has garnered the support of various working class communities and civil society groups, she said.
"The people are threatened by the worst economic crisis since the 1930s. This is the time champion and defend the rights of the people," said Kohila.
Moreover, she added that the bicycles which are being sponsored and therefore each participant would be supplied with a bicycle.
Starting points: Kedah, Kelantan and Johor
Participants would simultaneously take off from three spots – Kedah (Alor Setar), Kelantan (Kota Bharu) and Johor (Skudai) – with an average of 50 riders for each convoy.
"However, we are still considering the Kelantan launch as some areas in the state are flood afflicted. We will see how things go," she added.
Through the 16 days of the journey, participants will be given accommodation at stops.
According to Kohila, state hosts would organise their own set programmes for the arriving riders - including short sketches, dramas and talks on the highlighted issues.
Jerit is hosting a soft launch on Nov 29 at Melawati Stadium in Shah Alam to promote the campaign.
