Media statement by Lim Guan Eng in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, 25^th July 2012: 

Hishamuddin should apologise to Bersih and focus on real criminals instead of harassing legal bodies 

DAP lauds the High Court decision yesterday that has unequivocally quashed the declaration by Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hussein that the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) is an unlawful society.

In this landmark decision, High Court Judge Datuk Rohana Yusuf ruled that “the decision to outlaw Bersih impinges on the right guaranteed under the Federal Constitution and should not be taken in a just and lackadaisical manner.”

Further, Justice Datuk Rohana also said that Hishamuddin’s declaration on 1 July 2011 was “tainted with irrationality and it was made without taking into account the relevant facts.”

Now that the Court has ruled Hishamuddin’s actions as “tainted” and “irrational”, he should immediately apologise for unilaterally declaring Bersih illegal and allow it to be registered as a lawful society.

This decision has basically proven that Bersih is a legal movement and that the hundreds and thousands of Malaysians who participated in the Bersih 2.0 rally on 9 July 2011 and Bersih 3.0 on 28 April 2012 are actually law-abiding citizens who are not criminals. Unfortunately, because of Hishamuddin’s irrational decree, the police had treated them as if they were criminals.

In the Bersih 3.0 rally earlier this year, many protesters including media workers and reporters had been subjected to indiscriminate police action including incidents of assault and confiscation of equipment. Previously in Bersih 2.0, hundreds of people were arrested leading up to the rally, including six PSM members who were detained without trial under the now-defunct Emergency Ordinance.

Instead of wasting energy and resources on political vendettas, chasing Islamist or communist shadows where there are none, and harassing legal movements such as Bersih and innocent civilians who participated in the rallies, Hishamuddin should do the rational thing and focus on fighting real criminals.

*Lim Guan Eng, DAP Secretary General & MP for Bagan