Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 08:34:55 +0800
FAC News
5 November 2000 - 19.30
An estimated 100,000 people supported the 5th November 2000 Restore the
People's Rights Gathering
<<...>>
FAC News deployed "spotters" at various points all over Kuala Lumpur to
phone in the latest reports and incidences on the gathering as they occur.
As follows was the reports that came in from time to time.
18.50 today:
Ceramah at Pusat tarbiyah PAS tonight
The rally has officially ended. The crowd is now moving back to the city.
But the police are still chasing the stragglers and beating them up. Many
are injured and one is unconscious.
A lawyer is presently outside the Port Kelang police station trying to get
information on those arrested but the police refuse to allow him in. 36
people are being held in the Port Kelang police station.
Tonight, at 9.00pm, there will be a ceramah (speeches) at the Pusat Tarbiyah
P!
as, in Taman Melewar, Gombak. All the top opposition leaders are expected
to deliver speeches.
Participants in this afternoon's rally have been told to head for Pusat
Tarbiyah PAS which is expected to be jam packed by 7.30 pm tonight.
18.30 today:
Police chasing demonstrators
The police are chasing the demonstrators after shooting tear gas into the
crowd and are arresting as many people as they can.
Many more people are still on the way to the rally site but could not get
through because of the massive traffic jam. Cars on both sides of the Kesas
Highway are at a standstill for about 5 to 7 kilometers.
The organisers are still trying to total up the crowd strength. Early
estimates show that if all could have got through the target of 100,000
people could be met - to the surprise of even the organisers who had
expected the impending police action to have intimidated most to say home.
18.10 today:
Wan Azizah taken to safety!
as the police shoot tear gas into the crowd
Wan Azizah is presently being taken to safety as the police shoot tear gas
into the crowd.
According to a report received, the leaders were negotiating with the police
when the police suddenly started shooting tear gas into the crowd.
The crowd had to retreat to ensure Wan Azizah's safety and she is presently
being taken to a safe distance.
Wan Azizah was only slightly effected by the tear gas.
Another report stated that the crowd had already agreed to retreat when they
shot the tear gas.
17.45 today:
MalaysiaKini reporter's camera seized by the police
A MalaysiaKini reporter's camera was seized by the police. The said reporter
had taken a photo of an opposition supporter who was injured on the head.
The diskette in the camera was removed and confiscated before the camera was
returned.
17.15 today:
Wan Azizah still on the way - tear gas being shot from the helicopter
!
Wan Azizah is still on the way to the rally site, being pushed in her
wheelchair by her supporters.
One report received said that the police are now resorting to shooting tear
gas from the helicopter hovering above. The police target is the crowd
marching on the Kesas Highway.
Wan Azizah is in the crowd and there are fears for her safety. Wan Azizah is
suffering from a fractured foot and is not able to walk.
The crowd is attempting to break through the police barricade to get into
the rally site.
16.30 today:
Sahri phones in to confirm 34 arrested
Sahri Bahri, a National Justice Party supreme council member, has confirmed
that there are 34 arrested together with him. They have all been stuffed
into one truck and are not allowed out. The truck is so packed they can only
stand.
Ten of those arrested have been beaten up. Some were pulled out of their
cars stuck in the kilometers long traffic jam and beaten up before being
!
arrested. Some were beaten up a second time just before being stuffed into
the truck.
Another group of 15 have also been arrested but are yet to be brought to the
rally site which has become the police base of operations.
Cars left on the Kesas Highway are being towed away by the police to an
unknown destination.
16.00 today:
Police trapped inside - Reformasi takes over the Kesas Highway
The police cordoning the rally site at Jalan Kebun are now completely
surrounded and trapped inside by the convoy. While the convoy cannot get in,
neither can the police get out.
All exits from the rally site are blocked by thousands of cars.
Both sides of the four-lane Kesas Highway from the Kuala Lumpur entrance
have been completely taken over by the Reformasi supporters. They have all
got out of their cars and are chanting "REFORMASI" and "Undur Mahathir"
(Mahathir step down).
A report received said that the rakyat (citizens) now "owns!
" the Kesas
Highway.
The police are trying to break up the crowd with tear gas.
The crowd from the rear entrance to the site are mobilising to push forward
towards the police roadblock.
Another crowd is forming in Taman Andalas in Kelang and are preparing to
move.
15.40 today:
Traffic jam a few kilometers long - more than 30 arrested
A report just received says that the convoy is about three to four
kilometers long and is moving at a crawl.
Another report says that, so far, more than 30 have been arrested. There are
some injuries as the riot police are beating up those they arrested.
15.30 today:
Seven more people arrested
Seven more people have been arrested. This makes it 15 today and 6
yesterday, bringing the total to 21.
15.15 today:
Eight people arrested
Eight people have been arrested at the rally site, one of the them the
National Justice Party supreme council member, Sahri Bahri.
This brings t!
he numbers arrested since yesterday to 14.
15.05 today:
National Leaders now on the move
The press conference has just ended and the four party presidents of the
Barisan Alternatif plus other National leaders are now on the move to the
rally site.
15.00 today:
Press Conference is now going on
The National leaders of the four Barisan Alternatif opposition parties are
now conducting a press conference at the Awan Besar R&R. As soon as the pc
is over the convoy will move heading for the rally site.
14.45 today:
Second "wave" on the move
The second convoy of 150 cars led by the National Justice Party Youth
Leader, Ezam Mohd Noor, is now on the move.
The third wave, comprising of the National Leaders, will follow once the
second wave reaches the police roadblock.
14.40 today:
Police smashing up the cars
The police are hitting the cars parked along the Kesas Highway with sticks.
The police roadblock at the !
highway is jam packed and no cars can move.
14.35 today:
All the National leaders have arrived at the Awan Besar R&R
All the National leaders of the four opposition political parties have
arrived at the Awan Besar R&R. They are preparing to move with the second
"wave".
As follows is the status as at 14.30 today:
Convoy is 7 kilometers long
The convoy of cars is 7 kilometers long.
The first wave of 200 cars has arrived at the police roadblock leading to
the rally site. The highway at the police roadblock is jam packed and no
cars can move forwards or back.
14.22 today:
The police have started "shooting" the crowd
Three police water cannons have started spraying the crowd at the Jalan
Kebun rally site.
The first wave from the Awan Besar R&R is yet to arrive at the police road
block.
The convoys from Kelang and Shah Alam have also started moving heading for
the rally site.
14.10 today:
The co!
nvoy is now on the move
The first "wave" of 200 cars have started to move towards the rally site.
They are expected to be stopped by the police where they will get down from
their cars and march on foot to the rally site.
The second wave will move once the first wave has been stopped by the
police.
13.50 today:
Crowd builds up at the Awan Besar R&R and other parts of the city
The President of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) has just arrived at
the Awan Besar R&R along the Kesas Highway. About 500 vehicles are also
there waiting for the arrival of the party leaders. The other party leaders
are still on the way to the meeting point.
Other groups have assembled in other parts of the city. One group is at the
Shah Alam State Mosque while another is at the Kelang mosque. More groups
have formed all over the city.
Once all the leaders have arrived at the rendezvous point, the convoy will
then move to the rally site!
. Their cars will then be parked along the
Highway at the police roadblock and the leaders will get down from their
cars and lead the march on foot to the rally site.
12.15 today:
Police cordon Kuala Lumpur City
Malaysian police have cordoned Kuala Lumpur City to prevent the rally from
regrouping and moving to an alternative site.
Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) and Masjid Negara (the National
Mosque) have both been cordoned off and no one is being allowed through.
Dataran Merdeka and Masjid Negara are two sites where the Reformasi movement
"exploded" on 20th September 1998.
Groups are forming at various points just outside Kuala Lumpur. At the Awan
Besar R&R, 300 vehicles are already awaiting the arrival of the four top
Barisan Alternatif leaders due there at 1.30pm. More vehicles are heading
for this rendezvous site.
Various other smaller groups are looking for alternative routes into the
city and into the ral!
ly site.
Rally supporters have been warned that UMNO supporters will be barricading
the rally site to prevent anyone from getting in. They have also been warned
that the UMNO paramilitary brigade is preparing for violence if necessary.
11.40 today:
Four top leaders of BA to convoy to the rally site
The four top leaders of the Barisan Alternatif will be at the Awan Besar R&R
on the Kesas Highway at 1.30pm. From here they will join the convoy that
will head for the rally site at Jalan Kebun, Shah Alam.
02.00 this morning:
Six people arrested
Six people, five men and one woman, have so far been arrested. They were all
picked up from the landowner, Johari's, house yesterday afternoon.
The woman, Nora, is being held in the Kapar police station while the five
men, one of them Nora's husband, are at the Port Kelang police station.
One of the men arrested is Johari himself.
Rally organiser Chairman, Saari Sungib, in a safe !
house
Two nights ago, three police officers went to Saari Sungib's house looking
for him at around 8.30pm. Saari had just left his house less than five
minutes before that.
Saari is now in a "safe house" that now serves as his "operations center".
His family has also been taken to safety.
The latest decision taken is that the rally will go on as planned.
Police cordon the rally site
Since last night the police have cordoned the rally site and no one can get
in or out. We were told 6,000 personnel have been deployed for this
operation led by the Chief of Police of Selangor State.
Currently 11 police trucks, water cannons, and so on are at the site. More
vehicles are on standby at the police depot in Jalan Semarak.
This is believed to be the biggest deployment of police personnel since the
Anwar Ibrahim political crisis erupted on 2 September 1998.
Most of the police have been brought in from the other states.
UMNO ready f!
or war
This morning UMNO will be barricading the road leading to the rally site to
prevent anyone from getting in.
According to an UMNO source we spoke to, "We are all prepared for a fight.
Even if we end up in fisticuffs so be it. This will show the people that the
gathering is not peaceful as what they have claimed."
It is believed that a fight would give grounds for the police to arrest the
rally organisers.
UMNO has also placed banners condemning the rally all over the rally site.
The banners also ask the landowner, Johari, to leave that area.
Yesterday, some National Justice Party workers who were putting up flags and
banners were surrounded by the UMNO "Gerak Gempur" squad, a paramilitary
unit of UMNO, and told to leave the area. They Gerak Gempur squad were all
in uniform.
Johari intimidated and threatened
Johari, the landowner of the rally site has been visited by the local UMNO
boys and threatened. He was also tol!
d to move out of the area. The police
have also visited him and warned him of arrest if he allows his land to be
used for the rally.
Johari has since been arrested.
Roadblocks set up all over the country
Police roadblocks have been set up all over the country as far away as
Johore State. Cars heading for Kuala Lumpur are stopped and given a thorough
search.
Cars with opposition party banners, flags or stickers are told to stop
beside the road and are not allowed to continue their journey.
Organisers of the rally have advised supporters and those coming for the
rally not to display anything that will show they are opposition supporters
or that they intend to go for the rally.
Leaders vow to attend the rally
Opposition leaders have declared they would be going for the rally in spite
of the police roadblocks and barricade by UMNO. Convoys are being planned to
break through the roadblocks.
Groups will be assembling at vari!
ous meeting points to form these convoys
and the organisers have been busy contacting convoy leaders.
Structures and banners torn down and equipment confiscated
The police have torn down structures set up on the rally site. Flags and
banners have also been torn down except for the UMNO banners condemning the
rally and the opposition parties.
The police have also confiscated the sound system and other equipment.
Raja Petra Kamarudin
COUNTERBALANCE.ANYWHERE.ANYTIME.ANYBODY.ANYONE.COM
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Shopping - Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All with one Wallet.
