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Malaysia's Anwar urges protests over 'rigged' poll
Sydney Morning Herald - May 7, 2013
"The Malaysian public are angry... there are hundreds of thousands of them saying, look we want to take to the streets," he said.
Mr Anwar, leader of a three-party alliance that contested the election, will address what is expected to be a huge protest rally at a stadium on Kuala Lumpur's outskirts on Wednesday evening.
"The movement for change is unstoppable," he said. "The simple demand of the people for a clean and fair election to ensure our elected government is accountable, transparent and incorruptible will continue to echo loudly in spite of the rigged 13th general election."
Mr Anwar, 65, said it was better for any public gatherings to be in approved areas rather than people taking to the streets where violence could erupt. "We have a clear message... that there's a limit to people's patience, and never underestimate the capacity of people to move and demand," he said.
Wednesday's rally is also supported by Bersih, an organisation that campaigns for free and fair elections that has refused to recognise that Prime Minister Najib Razak's Barisan Nasional coalition was returned to power with a reduced majority in the closest-fought election since Malaysia gained independence from Britain in 1957.
Bersih has set up a panel to investigation claims of widespread ballot-tampering and the presence of "phantom" foreign voters using illegal identity cards.
"I've never seen such blatant acts of fraud," said Ambiga Sreenevasan, Bersih's co-chairwoman. "I think they were more subtle previously. And they can't get away with it because a lot of it is recorded and we have eyewitnesses."
Ms Ambiga demanded Election Commission officials resign over the way they conducted the poll.
But Ahmad Omar, the Election Commission's deputy chief, dismissed the call. "Elections in this country are free and fair. Voters have decided, therefore everyone should accept the result," he said.
Ms Ambiga, a leading barrister, has also called for a ban on biased media outlets and for Malaysians to wear black clothing for a month as a sign of protest.
In an interview with the ABC, she also took a swipe at Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr, who has refused to criticise the conduct of the election and in February described Malaysia's democracy as robust.
"We don't need the international community to come out and say these elections were free and fair. We don't need them to say we have a robust democracy," she said.
On Monday Mr Najib was sworn in to power for five years by Malaysia's king.
After the ceremony Mr Najib, the son of a former prime minister, pledged to promote moderation among all Malaysians. "My government places great importance on racial harmony and national unity," he said.
Barsian won about 60 per cent of seats but with only 47 per cent of the popular vote. Opposition parties won about 50 per cent of the vote but failed to oust Barisan because of a gerrymandered system of voting that favours rural areas where Muslim Malays dominate.
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