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[Jintor]

Fun hearing my generally non-political extended family back home taking part. (To an extent; hoping pretty hard they don't get teargassed)

http://www.theguardian.com/world/20...n-protests-demand-pm-najib-razaks-resignation

Malaysians are staging protests calling for the resignation of the prime minister, Najib Razak, who is battling the fallout from a damning financial scandal.

The government was quick to condemn the weekend-long rallies, calling them illegal and blocking the website of the organisers, a coalition of non-governmental organisations.

This is the fourth demonstration by Bersih, which means “clean” in Malay, and is expected to be the largest. It is scheduled to last 34 hours from Saturday through to Sunday, to protest about what the group calls “one of the greatest multi-billion dollar corruption scandals in Malaysia’s history and the government’s most oppressive crackdowns on free speech”.

The security presence in the capital Kuala Lumur was increased on Saturday morning. The yellow Bersih T-shirts have also been banned but video posted online on Friday night showed many wearing them at a minor rally of the outskirts of the capital.

Najib is facing calls to resign after reports that he pocketed nearly $700m (£456m) from the debt-laden state fund 1 Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

A few quick notes:

- Opposition Anwar Ibrahim still in jail on trumped up sodomy charges after the endless dance of appeals/bullshit charges got him earlier this year
- Turnout organiser numbers estimate at about 200,000; government papers are saying 25,000
- Current government/ruling party (Barisan National, or BN) relies heavily on racial divisions and spout bullshit about the Ethnic Malay/Malaysian Chinese (and Indian) divide. Racial division is actually enshrined in law (biased towards majority ethnic Malay following the end of British colonialism), mainly through uni quotas and ownership provisions for companies.

Here's some stuff about Bersih.

 

[Shokifer]

They are all clearly homosexuals.

 

[duckroll]

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/malaysia-s-mahathir-calls/2086762.html

Ex-PM Mahathir has also joined the protest movement. Not surprising though, since he was the one stirring all the shit from the start! Lol.

 

[rrvv]

Will be interested to see how this will be going. Personally I dont think this will be successful unleash they gone full out like arab spring

 

[Jintor]

They are all clearly homosexuals.

i hope you're just referencing that comment the PM made a week or so back and not just angling to get banned, lol

 

[Antiwhippy]

i hope you're just referencing that comment the PM made a week or so back and not just angling to get banned, lol

He's referencing Najib jailing the opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim on grounds of sodomy.

 

[Shokifer]

i hope you're just referencing that comment the PM made a week or so back and not just angling to get banned, lol

I'm making fun of the use of sodomy as a way to discredit the government's enemies. Because that's the stupidest fucking thing.

 

[Kenshin001]

They are all clearly homosexuals.

No doubt they have been manipulated by the white people too.

 

[Jintor]

I'm making fun of the use of sodomy as a way to discredit the government's enemies. Because that's the stupidest fucking thing.

amazed it's still illegal

but yo, it's malaysia

 

[tauke]

I was there yesterday to observe the rally up close. Even managed to record around 30 mins of clip during the afternoon rally which I already edited.

Glad that there is no major incident so far except for the food poisoning that affects some of the participants as Bersih hand out free drinks and foods.

 

[Xisiqomelir]

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/malaysia-s-mahathir-calls/2086762.html

Ex-PM Mahathir has also joined the protest movement. Not surprising though, since he was the one stirring all the shit from the start! Lol.

"The only way for the people to get back to the old system is for them to remove this prime minister," he told media before heading to the protests in central Kuala Lumpur.

"And to remove him, the people must show people's power. The people as a whole do not want this kind of corrupt leader."

Something something pot stone kettle glass house.

EDIT: I know duckroll and OP will get it, but to be clear to any non ASEANese reading, I'm very much anti-Najib as well.

 

[Antiwhippy]

Do hope that my relatives in malaysia is safe, though they're not really the protesting type.

 

[shink]

Rallies around the world too
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/mobile/asiapacific/in-photos-bersih-4-0/2084798.html

 

[Antiwhippy]

Not surprised to see so many gathering in melbourne. Melbourne has a ton of malaysians.

 

[Sesha]

Is Malaysia currently a dictatorship of sorts? Because reading and hearing about it that's kinda the feeling I get.

Anyway, hopefully protests end up as peaceful as possible and the minimal amount of shit is stirred by police and government agents.

 

[fertygo]

Good time to buying ringgit?

 

[ArtHands]

Nothing's going to happen to Najib Razak in the end imo.

 

[Jintor]

Is Malaysia currently a dictatorship of sorts? Because reading and hearing about it that's kinda the feeling I get.

I wouldn't say a dictatorship, just your bog standard SE Asia "Party came to power in the wake of independence movements and has spent majority of time engaged in graft and/or shoring up its own position in legal/illegal ways so it never can be ousted from power via elections"

 

[shink]

Just reading up on the 1MDB scandal, and the lengths they have gone to stop criticism. It's actually quite remarkable.
Government ministers sacked, committee members part of the investigation offered government positions, news publications suspended or blocked. Like if they didn't have anything to hide would they do this?

 

[Kettch]

They actually banned the t-shirts? That's when you know you have an oppressive government going on.

 

[hamchan]

Good. If only we could get rid of the current party as a whole but I doubt that will ever happen since their "elections" will always keep them in power.

 

[Irminsul]

Rallies around the world too
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/mobile/asiapacific/in-photos-bersih-4-0/2084798.html

I actually saw a bunch of yellow-clad people yesterday in Munich. So that's what these were. At least as I saw, they didn't have any signs to make clear what they were on about. Or I just missed the demonstration proper. Pretty fascinating the protests are that widespread.

 

[CTLance]

I actually saw a bunch of yellow-clad people yesterday in Munich. So that's what these were. At least as I saw, they didn't have any signs to make clear what they were on about. Or I just missed the demonstration proper. Pretty fascinating the protests are that widespread.

I was puzzled by this as well, and it seems like a good explanation.

Amazing how these things happen all around the globe nowadays.

 

[Easy_D]

They actually banned the t-shirts? That's when you know you have an oppressive government going on.

Yep. When your government acts like fuckwit devs on Steam who deletes bad comments about their games, ban people etc, then you know you have it bad

 

[Antiwhippy]

I was puzzled by this as well, and it seems like a good explanation.

Amazing how these things happen all around the globe nowadays.

A lot of people immigrated from malaysia.

You can see why.

 

[hamchan]

Hopefully this gives notice to the high degree of racism that occurs in Malaysia too, many of which is institutionalized by the government with their discriminatory policies.

 

[ArtHands]

Just reading up on the 1MDB scandal, and the lengths they have gone to stop criticism. It's actually quite remarkable.
Government ministers sacked, committee members part of the investigation offered government positions, news publications suspended or blocked. Like if they didn't have anything to hide would they do this?

You're just scratching the surface. Like the assassination of Hussain Najadi, and the fire at the Malaysia police station.

 

[i_am_ben]

will this actually work though?