KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysian police used batons and water cannon on
Sunday to disperse hundreds of anti-government protesters at Kuala
Lumpur's iconic Twin Towers, arresting more than 20 and beating
several as stunned shoppers looked on.
Some 400 people, including trade unionists, opposition parties and
non-government organisations, had gathered at an upmarket shopping
mall at the towers for the latest in a series of rallies against
fuel price rises since the government sharply raised prices on
February 28.
They were met by over 400 police, including officers with dogs and
on horseback. Police in riot gear wielding batons and rifles were
also seen in formation, while two water cannon trucks stood
ready.
Shouting anti-government slogans and holding floating black
balloons to symbolise oil and inflation, the protestors demanded
the government reverse the price rises.
"When the petrol price goes up, all our essential goods go up," K.
Brabakarun, a vice president from the Malaysian Trades Union
Congress, the main protest organiser, told reporters.
"There's a limit. Workers can't afford a price increase against
their salaries so we are telling the government," he said.
The MTUC and other organisations will deliver a memorandum to Prime
Minister Abdullah Badawi on Monday over the issue, he said.
The rise has sparked public anger. Abdullah's administration has
pleaded for public understanding, citing high global oil
prices.
Crowd numbers at the rallies during the month have been dropping
but protesters have become increasingly defiant.
Chaotic scenes ensued as the demonstrators followed a police call
to disperse, but then marched further down the street to continue
the rally before heading back to the Twin Towers.
Police then used a water cannon to disperse demonstrators, who
scrambled across a paved forecourt in front of the towers to
continue their rally.
For over two hours protesters repeatedly dispersed to mingle with
onlookers, but then gathered again in small groups near the towers
only to be chased by police.
Police finally pointed a water cannon at shocked shoppers and
tourists outside the Twin Towers and at an exclusive mall across
the street to clear the roads, before the protest petered
out.
Several protestors were seen being beaten and kicked by police
before being handcuffed and arrested. Deputy district police chief
Rodzi Ismail said more than 20 had been arrested but police were
still confirming numbers.
A leader in the opposition Islamic PAS party, Hatta Ramli, and two
of his daughters were among those arrested.
"What the police have done today is to show the government is
desperate to disperse all these forms of demonstrations so we must
go on to fight," said a PAS official, Zulkifli Ahmad. - AFP/de
