Low: Rallies were meaningless

PETALING JAYA: The two major rallies held in Kuala Lumpur have not contributed anything meaningful towards the country’s progress, says Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Paul Low.

As such public rallies which promoted discord should be avoided, he added.

He said the Bersih 4 and Himpunan Rakyat Bersatu rallies were not done in a proper way and had disrupted the nation’s peace and harmony.

The red and yellow shirt participants had no clear direction and different opinions of why they rallied

“I think few understood why they went,” he said after launching the Soka Gakkai Malaysia (SGM) Run for Peace 2015 at Stadium MBPJ here.

Low said he was not against peaceful assemblies, but said organisers should make clear their motives.

All together for peace: Some of the 20,000 participants taking part in the SGM Run for Peace at Stadium MBPJ in Petaling Jaya. — Bernama

He pointed out communal relations in Malaysia was fragile and rallies which promoted discord should be avoided.

“A society not at peace with itself cannot progress economically or socially,” he said, adding that foreign investors always thought of the long term and would not invest in an unstable country.

Low also urged the Government to listen to the people’s grouses to avoid street protests from happening.

“There should be avenues for discussions and engagement,” he added.

He also denied that there was double standards applied by the authorities, who declared Bersih 4 rally on Aug 29 and Aug 30 as illegal, but not the red shirt rally last Wednesday.

The insistence by Bersih organisers to hold their rally at Dataran Merdeka had disrupted the National Day rehearsals being held at the same venue, he said

Low said the red shirt rally was initially declared illegal because their theme, rightly or wrongly, was to protect the honour of one race.

But, it was allowed by police after the organisers declared the more positive theme of promoting unity.

Over 90,000 participants took part in the non-competitive run at 19 locations across Malaysia.

There were an estimated 20,000 who took part in Petaling Jaya.