It’s too late, Najib
By K Pragalath, FMT
There is a Malay saying to the effect that you can profit from your regret only if you heed it before doing something to cause it. The wisdom of this saying should be hitting Najib and Co as they attempt to repair their battered image in the wake of mindlessly violent suppression of citizens’ right to peacefully assemble and express their dissatisfaction.
Damage control at this point is just too late. Even as Barisan Nasional called former prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi out of retirement to spew propaganda on its behalf, visual images and eyewitness reports of harsh police action are already all over cyberspace, and condemnations by international organisations and in the foreign press have continued.
Indeed, the Jakarta Post has printed an editorial that supports Bersih 2.0’s demands, as if spitting in the face of Foreign Minister Anifah Amin, who is on a damage control trip in Indonesia.
Even the United Nations has accused Malaysian authorities of undermining democracy.
Trying to justify suppression of human rights is hard enough for an administration that claims to be espousing democracy, but the police and members of Najib Tun Razak’s cabinet are making it worse by continuing to vilify Bersih 2.0.
Their argument that Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is behind Bersih does not hold water for at least two reasons. One, the steering committee does not include politically affiliated individuals, unlike in Bersih 1.0. Two, Bersih chief S Ambiga publicly told Anwar off after he said he would tell her to call off the rally.
