AP

Posted: 2007-11-10 06:43:57

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov. 10 (Kyodo) – Thousands of activists on Saturday rallied for the king to intervene to end alleged abuses in the electoral process as the country heads for an expected early election.

The demonstrators from some 70 nongovernmental organizations and opposition parties defied warnings from Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the police not to attend the banned gathering.

It turned out to be the biggest antigovernment protest in nearly a decade.

Over 1,000 police were deployed to prevent the rally from taking place, with roadblocks mounted in many areas leading to Independence Square in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

The organizer, the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih), claimed over 40,000 people took part.

The demonstrators congregated in separate areas in the vicinity of the square before marching toward the palace chanting “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) and “Reformasi,” a war cry of the reform movement of the late 1990s.

They carried a banner saying “Daulat Tuanku” or “Long Live the King” and most wore yellow T-shirts, the color of royalty.

Malaysia’s monarchy plays a largely ceremonial role but recently it has enjoyed a sudden upsurge in popularity thanks to its recent intervention in some judicial appointments.

“Our appeals to the government for these reforms have fallen on deaf ears and as such it has abdicated its responsibility to safeguard the democratic institutions of the nation,” opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said.

He led other opposition leaders in handing over a memorandum appealing to the king to press for electoral reform.

Tian Chua from the Anwar-led opposition National Justice People told Kyodo News that at least 40 people were arrested, with two or three badly injured in scuffles with the police.

Bersih held a similar rally, on a much smaller scale, in Terengganu State in September which ended up with two demonstrators shot during a clash with the police.

These rallies aim to highlight what they said were widespread election irregularities.

According to the New York-based Human Rights Watch, Malaysia’s parliamentary elections have been characterized by vote buying, the use of public resources by the ruling parties, and gerrymandering. The Election Commission has been accused of bias.

Bersih is demanding the use of indelible ink to prevent voters from casting more than one vote, the removal of alleged phantom voters from electoral rolls, and access to state-controlled media by all political parties.

“Only when elections are clean and fair, can citizens be real masters of their own destiny and expect holders of public office to act accountably and effectively,” Bersih said in a statement.

To date, the Election Commission has agreed to use indelible ink and transparent ballot boxes. It has also pledged to clean up the electoral roll.

Political watchers are speculating that Abdullah will call for elections by the first quarter of next year although the current parliamentary five-year term doesn’t expire until March 2009.

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11/10/07 06:43 EST