The Bersih 2.0 rally next month will be the litmus test of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government’s commitment to tolerance and openness, PKR said today.
The opposition party said the planned mammoth July 9 rally to demand electoral reform will determine if Malaysia can progress as a society in step with the demands of an increasingly progressive public.
“The ability and right of a citizen to elect a party of his choice independently and without manipulation is central to the political integrity that the rakyat now demands loudly of any political party in Malaysia,” PKR said in a statement today.
It pointed out that the lack of integrity in the electoral system will continue to impede efforts by the government to advance Malaysia economically and socially, despite the Najib administration’s promise of future prosperity.
The Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lynchpin also chastised BN for its “blatant antagonism” towards the rally, in particular “strong statements bordering on threats” issued by the Home Ministry in recent weeks.
PKR warned that the ruling coalition’s zero tolerance attitude towards Bersih 2.0 and electoral reform only serves to ensure continued erosion of public confidence in national institutions.
PR component parties and activists are gearing up to march on July 9 in the second such rally by election watchdog Bersih.
The first rally in 2007 saw up to 50,000 people take to the streets of the capital, where they were dispersed by police armed with tear gas and water cannons.
The 2007 rally has been credited for the PR’s record gains in Election 2008, where the opposition pact swept to power in five states and won 82 parliamentary seats.
PAS has promised to bring some 300,000 protestors this year in hopes that it will galvanise support for the opposition in the next general election, which is expected to be called within a year.
Umno Youth and Malay rights group Perkasa has said they will march on July 9 also to counter the Bersih rally.
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