Hisham says no plans for military action, won’t shut Internet

Hisham says no plans for military action, won’t shut Internet
By Melissa Chi
July 08, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, July 8 — Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein pledged today that the government will not resort to deploying military personnel for the Bersih rally tomorrow, nor will Internet services be disrupted.

Electoral reform movement Bersih has vowed to press ahead with a rally calling for free and fair elections at Stadium Merdeka despite the authorities rejecting a police permit and withholding permission to use the historic venue. Two other groups, Perkasa and Umno Youth, have also been barred from carrying out counter-protests.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, or the day after. But under the law, there are provisions, so at the moment, we feel that there are police in place, so there is no necessity to talk about the military,” the Home Minister told reporters at the Bukit Aman federal police headquarters here.

Hishammuddin said the government will react according to how events unfold tomorrow. City authorities and the police have said some 32 roads will be closed to traffic while express bus services from the city centre have been rerouted to Hentian Duta.

The police have also brought in personnel from beyond the city limits to aid in the operations. They have also applied for court orders to bar 91 people from Bersih, Umno Youth and Perkasa from entering the city tomorrow.

Bersih, a loose coalition of 62 non-governmental organisations, has insisted that it will not move its rally away from Stadium Merdeka tomorrow, stating that it is too late for its supporters to change their plans.

It has also demanded that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who proposed on Monday that Bersih move its street march to a stadium, instruct Stadium Merdeka to allow the rally to take place in the historical venue.

Blogger: The above news is taken from The MALAYSIAN Insider