Rally goers full of praise for cops

KUALA LUMPUR: Police earned a feather in their cap for their subtle approach in managing the fifth edition of Bersih 2.0’s rally on Saturday and also the Red Shirts rally the same day.

The cops merely kept a vigilant eye on participants and assisted in traffic flow and there were no complaints from any party of high-handedness by police personnel.

Many were full of praise for the cops and felt safe with their presence at Dataran Merdeka, Bangsar, Masjid Jamek and Padang Merbok here.

Despite Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar’s earlier warning that police would not hesitate to take anti-riot measures, Saturday’s rallies proceeded without a single tear gas canister being fired.

Former Bersih chairman Datuk S. Ambiga was pleased at how rally-goers were left alone, but said it was unnecessary to have closed off the entrance to Dataran Merdeka.

“I have no objections or quarrel with the police. The way they facilitated and left us alone was very commendable,” she said, adding that the road closures were unnecessary.

Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir, activist and daughter of former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, similarly congratulated the police for their handling of what might have turned out into an incendiary situation.

Although Marina pointed out that police chose to arrest 14 leaders of both Bersih and Red Shirts on the eve of the rallies, she said they had otherwise performed commendably in maintaining peace and security on the rally day itself.