Malaysian police break up antigovt protest

Malaysian police break up antigovt protest

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Malaysian police fired teargas and
water cannon at protesters in the capital on Saturday to break up
the fourth anti-government demonstration in a week.

Riot police mounted a show of force across the heart of Kuala
Lumpur to stop protesters from gathering at Merdeka (Freedom)
Square, where 30,000 demonstrators on Sunday called for an end to
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's 17-year rule.

About 2,000 demonstrators on Saturday briefly shouted
Reformasi (Reform) and Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest) before
police fired water cannon, driving the protesters away from the
north side of the square.

About 100 riot police with shields and batons then marched in
a phalanx behind the truck carrying the water cannon, forcing
protesters to flee up a wide avenue.

Plainclothes police wearing yellow headbands detained at least
a dozen protesters. The demonstrators, supporters of sacked
finance minister Anwar Ibrahim, later dispersed.

Elsewhere, riot police fired teargas to prevent protesters
from reaching the square, the official Bernama news agency said.
A police helicopter hovered overhead.

On the south side of the square, about 500 protesters fled
when police threatened to fire water cannon at them.

In the surrounding streets, groups of protesters played cat
and mouse with riot police into the evening.

Earlier, outside the national mosque, riot police brandishing
batons chased away several dozen people who shouted "Reformasi"
(Reform), the slogan of Anwar's incipient movement.

Authorities blocked several roads including the one leading to
Mahathir's official residence, where police had fired teargas and
water cannon on Sunday to drive away demonstrators who threw
stones and shouted anti-government slogans.

Anwar, who was sacked on Sept. 2, was arrested on Sunday after
leading thousands through the streets of the capital in a rare
public protest against Mahathir, Asia's elder statesman.

In a related development, Kuala Lumpur sent a senior
politician, former deputy prime minister Ghafar Baba, to Jakarta
to explain Anwar's arrest to Indonesian activists.

Tarmidzi Hashim, the Malaysian embassy's councilor of
information, said in a media release that Baba arrived in Jakarta
on Saturday afternoon and was scheduled to give a media briefing
at Shangri-La Hotel on Sunday.

Baba will stay in Jakarta for four days and meet several
Indonesian figures, but Hashim did not disclose their names.

Dozens of Indonesian activists have staged pro-Anwar
demonstrations at the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta.

Earlier, police broke up subsequent demonstrations led by
Anwar supporters on Monday and Friday, detaining more than 100.

Hours after last Sunday's demonstration, Anwar was arrested in
his suburban home and detained under the Internal Security Act
(ISA), which permits indefinite detention without trial.

Human rights groups and opposition parties have denounced the
authorities' use of the ISA to detain Anwar and 14 of his
supporters. The United States and Britain have expressed concern
over the use of the ISA.

The London-based human rights organization Amnesty
International on Friday declared Anwar and his 14 political
allies to be prisoners of conscience and called for their
immediate release.

The federal police chief said this week that Anwar would soon
be indicted and put on open trial. Authorities have banned all
rallies in favor of Anwar, who has not been seen by his family or
in public since he was arrested, and cordoned off his suburban
home.

Anwar, under investigation for sodomy and treason, has
repeatedly said he was the victim of a high-level conspiracy to
end his political career, and accused senior government officials
of corruption and cronyism. (pan)