Police use tear gas on Anwar protesters<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysian police used a water cannon and
\ntear gas Saturday to break up protests by hundreds of chanting
\nsupporters of jailed ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim, witnesses
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
After an earlier clash at the national mosque, seven
\ntruckloads of riot police and a paramilitary platoon moved into a
\ncity center shopping area about one kilometer (0.6 miles) away to
\ndisperse about 500 protesters.<\/p>\n
Police sealed off Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman and ordered shops
\nto pull down shutters before charging a crowd which was shouting
\nReformasi (Reform), the rallying cry of the National Justice
\nParty (Keadilan) founded by Anwar's wife.<\/p>\n
A crowd of about 50 gathered in the street after police had
\nleft, shouting Allah-u Akhbar (God is Greater) and calling for
\nreform.<\/p>\n
\"I am not here to be arrested but we are sick of this,\" said
\none woman. \"We have no freedom to express our feelings in our
\ncountry.\"<\/p>\n
Hamid Mustaffa, the police director for internal security,
\ntold AFP that 48 people, including two women, had so far been
\ndetained for further investigations.<\/p>\n
\"The situation is under control but there are still batches of
\nprotesters around. We will continue to monitor the areas,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
A planned mass protest at 3 pm at the national mosque, to mark
\nthe first anniversary of Anwar's sentencing to six years' jail,
\nfailed to materialize amid a huge police clampdown.<\/p>\n
Some 150 people shouting Reformasi at the mosque were chased
\naway by police.<\/p>\n
But trouble broke out at the mosque after evening prayers when
\nsome 100 people emerged shouting slogans. They were joined by
\nsympathizers nearby.<\/p>\n
Police sprayed the crowd of about 400 with water apparently
\nlaced with a pepper-like irritant.<\/p>\n
Police and paramilitary forces carrying automatic weapons had
\npoured into the city center from early Saturday to try to block
\nthe protest. Authorities say it is illegal because it does not
\nhave a police permit.<\/p>\n
Police Friday arrested three leading members of Keadilan in a
\npre-emptive strike. They ordered four others, including vice-
\npresident Tian Chua, to report to them or face arrest.<\/p>\n
In a drastic security operation, roadblocks were mounted on
\nsome highways into the capital. Police armed with M-16 rifles
\nwatched train stations to stop supporters arriving from outside
\nand helicopters hovered overhead.<\/p>\n
The charismatic Anwar, the head of the opposition Alternative
\nFront alliance, was jailed for abuse of power and is now on trial
\nfor alleged sodomy.<\/p>\n
Anwar, 52, says he is the victim of a high-level conspiracy
\nbecause he intended to expose corruption and was seen as a
\npolitical threat to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.<\/p>\n
The Alternative Front, in a statement issued before the street
\nclashes, condemned the \"heavy-handed tactics\" by police. It said
\nit was a \"monstrous lie\" that organizers and supporters were
\nplanning violence and riots.<\/p>\n
\"All that they were seeking to do was to express in a
\npeaceful, democratic manner their unhappiness with the sentencing
\nof Anwar a year ago,\" it said.<\/p>\n
Mahathir, due to return to Malaysia Saturday night from the
\nG77 summit in Cuba, had accused Keadilan of planning a riot.
\nBy curbing the right to public assembly, Mahathir's government
\nshowed it was an \"authoritarian regime which attempts to
\ncamouflage its represession with a veneer of democratic forms,\"
\nthe opposition statement added.<\/p>\n
Seven people, including Keadilan state leaders, were
\nreportedly held in southern Malacca state Friday as they prepared
\nto attend the protest.<\/p>\n
Organizers had hoped to bring in supporters from across the
\ncountry by train, light railway and bus.<\/p>\n
Water cannon and tear gas were used to quell disturbances
\nafter Anwar was sentenced last April and to break up a pro-Anwar
\nprotest last September at the national mosque.<\/p>",
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