More than 2,000 lawyers gather to protest Assembly Bill

Melissa Lee

Malaysian lawyers gathered at the Lake Gardens near to the Parliament House in Kuala Lumpur to protest a Bill they believe will destroy all rights of the citizens to congregate to express their views on any issue.

Prime Minister Najib Razak has refused to acknowledge the criticism of the Bar Council and other civil society leaders including the Bersih movement for free and fair election.

To Najib, the Bill is even “revolutionary” and a “giant leap”. But to the protesters, who include opposition politicians, the Bill is oppressive, subjugates the citizens natural rights to the police and regresses Malaysia to below Myanmar, which is known for its black record on human rights.

Vow to keep up the pressure

On reaching the august House, president of the Bar Lim Chee Wee and 9 others were allowed into the lobby. They handed over a copy of the Bar’s alternative Bill to Deputy Minister Liew Vui Kong, plus a letter reiterating their call to MPs to vote wisely on the Bill.More than 2,000 lawyers from the 14,000-strong Bar Council turned up for the much-anticipated protest despite the short notice given. They began begin their 2.5km ‘Walk for Freedom’ to Parliament at around 12.30pm.

“We are not anti-government or pro-opposition. We are anti-injustice and anti-unconstitutionality. We are pro-justice and pro-rule of law. We have always worked closely with the government,” Lim said.

“The Bar will continue knocking on the doors of Parliament if the Bill makes it to the statute books in its current form.”

Kill the Bill

Earlier, the peaceful greenery of the Lake Gardens was temporarily disrupted by cheerful lawyers in good spirits and eager to chip in their cents worth for

greater justice and democracy in Malaysia.

“As the placards here say, ‘I cannot believe I’m protesting for my right to protest’. The Bill must be withdraw. There is just no excuse to push it through and extensive changes must be made,” prominent human rights lawyer and PKR vice president N Surendran told Malaysia Chronicle.

He had gathered at the Lake Gardens to participate in the protest. PKR Bukit Lanjan assemblywoman Elizabeth Wong, DAP MP for Segambut Lim Lip Eng, PKR assemblywoman Gan Pei Nei, and PKR legal affairs director Latheefa Koya were also present.

“This Bill takes away the very act that granted us independence,” Lim had told reporters.

Indeed, it was the grandfather of current Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, who is also Najib’s cousin, who had inspired many Malaysians to fight for independence with his courage to defy the British colonialists with street protest.

However, the idealism of the late Onn Jaafar does not appear to have captivated the current batch of Umno leaders, despite Hisham – touted to be a potential prime minister – bearing his genes.

Critics say since the days of former premier Mahathir Mohamad, Umno has gone to the dogs and is now a party of carpet-baggers, warlords, petty chieftains all out to demand and seize lucrative development contracts from the government – offering in return substandard and in many cases dangerous results.

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