Latest news with #BERSIH4
Focus Malaysia
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Focus Malaysia
Tengku Maimun's precious farewell gift to Malaysians: Landmark ruling on the right to dissent
Editor's Note: Rightly condensed by Boo Su-Lyn who is the editor-in-chief of CodeBlue, a website which seeks to promote healthcare as a human right: 'On her last day, Chief Justice (now former) Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat defends our constitutional right to freedom of assembly. The government can no longer require five-day notice to hold peaceful rallies as that has been ruled by the Federal Court to be unconstitutional.' On her last day, Chief Justice Tengku Maimun defends our constitutional right to freedom of assembly. The government can no longer require 5-day notice to hold peaceful rallies, as that has been ruled by the Federal Court to be — Boo Su-Lyn (@boosulyn) July 1, 2025 THE Federal Court had on yesterday (July 1) delivered one of the most important rulings on peaceful assembly in Malaysia. The Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 (PAA) came into force on April 24, 2012 which was just four days before one of the most historic rallies in the country – BERSIH 3.0. The PAA was intended to replace Section 27 of the Police Act and was meant to promote and facilitate peaceful assemblies. However, over the years, it has been used as a tool to criminalise peaceful protesters. Politicians, activists, students, members of the public and many others have been charged under this Act. I have always argued that there's no need for the 10-day advance notification requirement (prior to the amendment) under Section 9(5). This is because enforcement authorities are usually already aware when a rally is being organised. In many cases, no approval is granted even when organisers have complied with all conditions. Often, after submitting a notice, the rally would be declared 'illegal'. Participants of BERSIH 4 rally in September 2015 (Inage credit: Singapore Straits Times ) Precious gift Today's landmark decision is not just any ruling. It marks progress towards one of BERSIH's key demands under BERSIH 4 and 5: the right to dissent. As a former leader of the movement, I applaud the Federal Court's decision. The irony is that this demand was finally achieved through legal reform via the courts. Let us now celebrate what is enshrined in our Federal Constitution which under Article 10(1)(b) guarantees that 'all citizens have the right to assemble peaceably and without arms.' Kudos to all of you who have participated in peaceful gatherings or supported this journey over the years. ' Hak berhimpun, hak anak setiap bangsa (The right to assemble is the rights of every Malaysian).' – July 2, 2025 Mandeep Singh was one of the longest-serving staff at the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH). He was a key driver of the BERSIH Secretariat during a critical period in the movement's history, especially in the run-up to the BERSIH 3, 4 and 5 rallies. Mandeep Singh (Image credit: Malaysiakini ) During this period, the Hulu Selangor-born political activist was subject to over 30 interrogations, three death threats and five detentions for his involvement in BERSIH. The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Focus Malaysia
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Focus Malaysia
UMNO Youth boss told not to defend PMX in Sabah's caricature torching incident as 'what goes around, comes around'
IT is worrisome that both courtesy and respect accorded to Prime Minister Datuk Sei Anwar are thinning by the day in tandem with the widening trust deficit gap in his Madani administration. After having poured their heart out on the Facebook page of Your Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia over the weekend with an appeal 'to save Malaysia', a similar trend is detected on the Facebook page of UMNO Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh. In unison, the fanbase of the firebrand Merlimau state assemblyman swamped his post to counter him after he defended PMX by ticking off the Gempur Rasuah Sabah 2.0 rally protestors who torched the latter's caricature bearing the slogan 'Madani: Protector of Sabah's Corrupt'. 'You should be brave in your struggle but not stupid and rude!! (referring to the torching of PMX's caricature),' the Russia-trained medical doctor had penned on his Facebook page which has garnered 5.8K likes, 1.8K comments and 251 shares at the time of writing. 'Being brave doesn't mean we have to lose our manners as humans. To my brother undergraduate who feels brave because he managed to burn PMX's caricature, you are actually a coward and stupid person.' This is when a commenter advised the Melaka Rural Development, Agriculture and Food Security EXCO not to waste his time arranging to meet up with the young minds who have yet to be tested with positions and power. 'Instead, you should confront PMX who're always lying to the rakyat. Numerous promises have been made but the fact is not a single proof that PMX has fulfilled any of the promises made before. ZERO!' Another commenter said he was not surprised as 'what's happening these days is passed down from the time when PH (Pakatan Harapan) was in the opposition'. 'Just face it for you did likewise to BN (Barisan Nasional), right? 😅😆' he teased while a fellow commenter displayed an old image purportedly of BERSIH 4 protestors in 2015 sleeping on the streets of Kuala Lumpur with a question 'Is this civilised?' Pointing to the English idiom 'you reap what you sow', one commenter stated that 'this is the price that must be paid when you helm of the government yet unable to implement what you've promised when you're outside the government'. Another contended that the notion of kepimpinan melalui teladan (leadership by example) is true simply because 'what u give u get back 🤣 [sic]'. One presumably UMNO loyalist attested that this was why incarcerated former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his team 'had never issued any statement when they're provoked by the opposition even with actions that were so despicable and rude, including destroying of public property'. Suffice to conclude that this could be the first time or a rarity that the nationalistic/rightist UMNO Youth leader is besieged with comments that not only went against his statement or proposal but instead supported/defended his alleged perpetrators (the undergraduate protestors). – June 25, 2025
