Police ‘being proactive’, says organiser over discussion on May Day rally
Ahead of a May Day and GST protest rally, police called the organisers for a “talk” about the programme as the Peaceful Assembly Act requires 10-day prior notice for any gathering.
"Police said they were just being proactive, reminding us that we need to give the relevant notice as per the Act," S. Arutchelvan (pic) said after the meeting at the Dang Wangi police headquarters today.
He said the police also wanted to know the programme for the rally and events organised in conjunction with it.
The police decision to engage the organiser comes after earlier action to charge other rally organisers in the city and elsewhere drew flak from civil society.
Notable among them included the 505 blackout rallies to protest the general election results, which saw several opposition leaders charged for illegal assembly.
Arutchelvam said they had wanted to know where it will be held and what we are going to do during the gathering.
“We told them that the event will start in front of the KLCC with speeches from representatives from civil societies and then we will walk to Dataran Merdeka. We will conclude our gathering there," said Arutchelvam, who is also secretary-general of Parti Sosialis Malaysia.
He said police had also asked them to suggest an alternative venue besides Dataran Merdeka as City Hall was carrying out upgrading work at the square.
"We told the police that Dataran Merdeka is important but nevertheless we will take this to our meeting and discuss it. As for now, Dataran Merdeka is still our end point," said Arutchelvan.
Arutchelvan was accompanied to today’s meeting by a legal adviser and a colleague and spent about one hour with Dang Wangi police chief ACP Zainuddin Ahmad and Kuala Lumpur public order head ACP Wan Abdul Bari Wan Abdul Khalid and other senior police officers to discuss the event.
"The officers said they wanted to know as they want to facilitate the organiser to ensure that all goes well," he said.
Arutchelvan, however, told the police to use their discretion in dealing with them.
"They need to use more discretion in handling the gathering issue. If we go strictly by the law, we can never gather due to many restrictions," Arutchelvan said.
He will be present at Dang Wangi police headquarters at 2.30pm next Monday for yet another round of discussions with the police.
PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu will also be attending the meeting, along with Tian Chua of PKR.
A coalition of some 90 non-governmental organisations and Pakatan Rakyat parties would mobilise Malaysians for the rally, to send a clear message against the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Committee member Dr Hatta Ramli on April 2, said the next 30 days would be spent working out the logistics for the rally.
Hatta, who is also PAS central working committee member, said the introduction of the tax would only burden the people further, especially those from the lower income group who did not need to pay for income tax.
He also pointed out that the introduction of the GST was the result of the failure of the current government to work on the current tax system especially the high income earners who manage to evade tax.
"It is a short cut way to victimise the defenceless public," he had said in a press conference held by the committee recently.
The rally, which is themed "GST - Protest till it is dropped", is also aimed to draw the participation of students, who will be among the hardest hit by the tax.
Rally coordinator E. Parameswari said May 1 rallies have been held in Malaysia since 1994, but hoped that this will be the biggest yet in terms of turnout.
Among the NGOs who have pledged support are Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia, Turun, Kuala Lumpur Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, Oppressed People's Network and Himpunan Hijau.
Other issues to be highlighted include the ongoing demand for a minimum wage of RM1,500, fair and free elections, environmental protection, free education, and the rights of women workers and migrant workers. – April 16, 2014.