Don’t take to the streets, new Suhakam chief tells Bersih

KUALA LUMPUR: Bersih 2.0 should be more “sophisticated” in fighting for human rights, says the new Suhakam chairman Tan Sri Razali Ismail.

He said the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections did not want to be part of the opposition parties, which were embroiled in infighting and trying to get rid of the Government, and was only seeking accountability.

“No one can prevent them from asking for accountability. But if you want to make a point, why do you go to the street? You damage a lot of property and all that. We are not that desperate in Malaysia like in Tunisia or Tahrir Square (Egypt during the Arab Spring uprising),” he said in an interview.

Razali, a former diplomat, said he is a Democrat but “not a take-over-the-town-or-the-Padang Democrat”.

“They sat there for three days and didn’t wash. Why?” he said in reference to last year’s Bersih 4 rally here that went on from Aug 29 and ended when the clock struck 12 to usher in Merdeka Day.

The rally was organised by Bersih 2.0 to call for free and fair elections, transparency and good governance, the right to dissent and saving the economy, among other things.

While last year’s Bersih 4 rally ended peacefully, rallies in previous years before the Public Assembly Act was passed had seen some chaos when protesters and police clashed as tear gas and water cannons were used to disperse crowds.

Recently, there was talk of a Bersih 5 and plans are still under discussion.

On the right to hold a rally at a symbolic place like Padang Merdeka or Masjid Jamek rather than in a stadium as often suggested by the authorities, Razali said: “Promise us that they (Bersih) will clean the place properly and give it back in pristine condition.”

He said the authorities had to weigh all the parties’ interests.

Under the Human Rights Commission Act, Suhakam has the mandate to monitor rallies.

On a different matter, Razali said Malaysia had signed only three out of nine international treaties and hoped it would sign another two or three, like the UN Treaty Barring Torture and the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

“We should look at the Treaty Barring Torture. We don’t have a bloodthirsty regime and the police have done a good job, even though sometimes they are harsh and hard. We are all Malaysians. There is no propensity to torture people that way.”

As for the convention protecting persons from “enforced disappearance”, he said this was the story of Latin America in the past where they used to take dissidents on a plane, open the door and kick them out.

“Those are completely out of date now and it is not in the human spirit to do these things anymore,” he said.