BERSIH or NOT...

Bersih 2.0 is going ahead with its planned July 9th rally in the capital. Here are some brief thoughts on what is, of course, a complicated issue:

1. I am not a fan of demonstrations, especially street demos. I would have applauded the organisers if they had the sense to organize it indoor at one of the many Pakatan controlled State venues (ie. Stadium Shah Alam?). But not being a fan of street demos doesn't mean I am against it.

As a political tool to effect change and influence public opinion (including international media), nothing works better than the sight of baton-wielding policemen going after men, women and children. Maybe that is what the organizers are hoping for?

2. Bersih 2.0 is organized to effect changes to our election system. There's nothing wrong with fighting for what is right and logical, for example the lack of transparency or even the need for massive postal votes. But I'm a bit perturbed at how quiet Bersih has been since the last GE in 2008 and only now, with the looming GE coming up, at how noisy they're trying to be. If it was a proper and legitimate NGO, it should have campaigned, fought, protested for the past 2-3 years as much IF NOT MORE as it's doing this year.

I have little doubt in my mind that Bersih is also a political tool used by the Opposition. Consider that the last Bersih rally was held in Nov 2007, just months before March 2008, an election that saw massive gains by the Opposition.

It's a repeat of the same playbook. That's not to take away the efforts of real bi-partisan activists, but I have a strong believe that it's a matter of "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours". Bersih without the massive grassroot numbers from political parties like PAS could never imagine to gather the number of people it hope to cause real impact.

3. But the reaction from the Government is baffling, to say the least. It has given this rally a life by endlessly talking about it. Even my dad, who has finally abandoned any attempt to keep in touch with real news, asked me yesterday, "What's going on the 9th?". Everyone now knows the date, and the rally. The fear-mongering is not working, and instead curiosity is piqued.

Today they just raided the office of Bersih 2.0, and there will be more pre-emptive arrests coming up soon. The Internet is abuzz with intelligent young Malaysians more and more disgusted by the heavy hand the authorities are using to quell this demonstration. The Government, in effect, has alienated the very group of people it knows it needs to draw away from the Opposition to have any chance of dominating Malaysian politics again. All the gains, if any, from ETP, PEMANDU etc is now lost in a space of a month.

Meanwhile, we have youths linked to UMNO attacking PKR headquarters and opportunist like Ibrahim Ali going all racial, without even a slap by the authorities. To see how silly this has become, Hisham just declared having the Bersih T-Shirt is illegal. Well, I'll be damn.

4. This does nothing but further infuriate more young professionals, and generally helping Bersih get more people invested in their cause. It's like telling people not to rob your house, but then opening the gate and letting people see how much money you have inside. Talk about shooting oneself on the foot.

If it was me in charge of the Government, I would offer the National Stadium with a police guarantee that no harm will come to any participants. This tactical gambit has the advantage of showing you're not against demonstrations, but you're concerned over the well-being of other citizens and to prevent chaos in the city center. Naturally, this offer would be rejected, but the goodwill has been established.

Once rejected, instead of arresting the organisers, work with them on choosing the best route, with safe corridors of passage guarded by the police. Publicize this co-operation.

On the day of the protest, keep your word. Protect the citizens who are exercising their rights. Make the whole protest AS BORING AS POSSIBLE. Imagine the following headline "Thousands March in KL" vs. "Protestors Attacked in KL". The first story would probably get only one or two mentions in the media, especially foreign. But the 2nd one would run for months, generating enough YouTube materials to spur people to hate the government leading up to GE. Nobody would watch videos of people just walking slowly and petition being handed over. But people love to spread videos of police beating up makciks and pakciks.

But alas, I am not in charge of this country:)

Finally, just to re-iterate, I am not a fan of Bersih, much less the Opposition. All I know is that Malaysians just like you and I are trying to say something that they feel strongly about. Maybe this time that thing is not something I share an interest in, but what if one day I want to say something I feel strongly about? Don't just dig a hole when you wanna shit. Think about the future.

p/s : Bersih 2.0 is so dot-com. Now it's all social and cool callsigns like Android Froyo. So maybe Bersih should consider a different name like Bersih - The Empire Strikes Back, or Bersih Durian. LOL