'Will we be allowed to wear our yellow T-shirts? Will the police offer assistance with the traffic? Will there be any roadblocks?'

Bersih 2.0 accepts stadium offer for rally

KSN: Bersih, S Ambiga and the NGOs have all won. Umno, Umno Youth included, Perkasa, Ibrahim Ali, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Mohd Ali Rustam and the Election Commission (EC) - they have all lost shamefully and shamelessly.

The protests must be held all over the country by Bersih 2.0 so that the people from all walks of life have the opportunity to participate and understand the message of Bersih on free and fair elections without disruptions from the police and the hooligans from Umno, Perkasa, etc.

But Ambiga still has to clarify what His Majesty said about the demands of Bersih and whether His Majesty agreed to direct the EC to discuss with Bersih on their fair requests on behalf of the voters.

Ferd Tan: Until we hear more from Ambiga, it is still a 'capitulation' of some sort, unless concessions are obtained from the BN government and the police.

Be rsih is still illegal. Yellow Bersih T-shirts are still subversive materials that can get the wearers arrested. The collateral damage of the arrest of PSM members and the detention of Dr Michael D Jeyakumar and five others under the Emergency Ordinance... forgotten? Many others were arrested for wearing yellow Bersih T-shirts and left with court charges hanging over their heads.

Now, it is the opportune time to negotiate as the issues above are related; otherwise when the 'fire dies down' it would be too late. If the issues are left unsolved, Ambiga and her steering committee would be held responsible, as they seemed to accede so easily without any attempt to 'free' its supporters from the unjust arrests.

I hope more can be heard from the Bersih committee; until then, we reserve our comments.

Anonymous_4135: Bersih should better get a big enough stadium to hold the crowd. Will we be allowed to wear our yellow T-shirts? Will the police offer assistance with the traffic? Will there be any roadblocks? Will Bersih face any hooligans seeking to interfere with this peaceful protest?

Pants on Fire: Let us all go and flood the stadium, and show them that the people are fed up with BN. Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein says Bersih is illegal? But the Agong has sanctioned it. Now who is looking stupid?

Bozuka: Bersih 2.0 is on a noble course. It is the silent majority rakyat's voice. It is Umno, who always say that only the minority are making noise, while the majority support them and elected them to rule.

Now when the silent majority are making noises, Umno hides under the Agong's umbrella. Only Umno, Patroit, Perkasa and Pesaka are manipulating and issuing threats of violence until they turn the whole event as betrayal to the country and the Agong.

The Agong should summon Umno, Patroit, Perkasa and Pesaka to the palace and issue them a stern warning not to create chaos in town.

Rahmat Ibrahim: By this meeting, the king has recognised Bersih as a legal movement. The king, being the head of Islam in the country, has given the rally the go-ahead. Therefore, it cannot be unIslamic or against Islam.

National Fatwa Council, please take note. This is the rakyat's victory through the graciousness of the king. Daulat Tuanku.

Anonymous_3de1: A wise decision indeed, Ambiga and Co. You should now ask PM Najib which stadium has been earmarked and make sure a formal application and approval is granted lest the police up the ante by accusing Bersih of not applying for a permit and therefore cannot hold the rally.

The discredited police is capable of all sorts of underhanded tactics to foil anything that is anathema to Umno/BN. They have just planted parangs, molotov cocktails and other offensive matters among Bersih T-shirts to incriminate the movement and to justify branding Bersih supporters as subversive elements.

The idiotic home minister will leave it to the police to hatch any excuse to stop the gathering because he is mentally incapable to doing so himself. The joke is that the king has just had an audience with leaders of an 'illegal' movement. We are waiting to hear how the other side react.

Raja Chulan: We are all proud of you, Ambiga. Viva Bersih 2.0! Just make sure that no politicians hijack this event. They can come to support but there shall be no speeches by them. It must be a bi-partisan and a truly rakyat's event. I will be there at the stadium to support you and Bersih 2.0. The rakyat have won.

Paul Warren: When the incumbents abdicate their duty, the king has to intervene. This is how the incumbents responsible for governing lose their authority because they cannot, or don't know how to, dispense justice wisely.

Umno will be seen as unfit to rule. After all, Umno had the option to just facilitate the protest. The angst and the fear raised was all so unnecessary.

Fairness for all: The fact that the Agong gave an audience to Bersih and that His Majesty did not ask them to call off the rally, but to instead have it in a stadium indicated that he does not consider Bersih illegal.

Shame on Najib for using the Agong to do his dirty job. He tried every high-handed manner to stop the rally, but he failed. Now that the Agong has advised Bersih to have it in the stadium, the police cannot arrest anyone wearing yellow.

Let's flood the stadium and show Najib and his gangsters that people's power is stronger than all his henchmen.

Meanwhile, Bersih rallies in other countries will go on and I'm sure that itself will give lots of publicity in other countries about how Malaysian goverment cheats in elections.

Kit P: I think the Agong has acted wisely in this matter - within the limits of a ruler who has to act on the advice of the government. Remember, Hishammuddin Hussein and the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) have already declared Bersih an illegal organisation, and its supporters subject to immediate arrest.

So granting the Bersih leaders and audience has symbolic meaning. Obviously, he wants the rally called off, but there is now a face-saving route for Bersih to do so.

The government needs to reciprocate by dropping charges against those arrested for supporting the rally, and especially releasing those detained under the Emergency Ordinance. I wonder if the Special Branch has told Hishammuddin and PM Najib about this. The reality is, both PDRM and BN-Umno have damaged themselves with their actions.

Kee Thuan Chye: Bersih should not agree to hold the rally in a stadium. This will help PM Najib score points, which he does not deserve. He has, in fact, been ruthless in trying to crush Bersih.

What's the point of having a rally in a stadium? You can't create public awareness of the eight demands for electoral reform. You can't - to quote the political scientist Wong Chin Huat - embolden the meek. Here's a big 'NO' to a stadium rally.

Tanteo: Don't people realised that the Agong has saved the Umno/BN government's skin? It looks like the rulers are of use after all. I thought the Bersih 2.0 steering committee gave in to easily.

We are too gullible if we think that the government will accede to the Bersih demands after this. Maybe they were all in awe when summoned to the palace to see the king. I am very disappointed.

Bender: The rally doesn't matter anymore because Bersih had managed to convey the message to the public (even without the demonstration), and as a bonus, has showed the true colours of the ruling government and their unruly minions like Perkasa and Umno Youth.

SusahKes: I'd say give Ambiga credit where it is due. Death threats, silat idiots, Ibrahim Ali, Utusan Malaysia , threat of the Internal Security Act (ISA), Najib, Hishammuddin, Khairy Jamaluddin, MP Kota Belud Abdul Rahman Dahlan...

Ambiga has endured all of them and then some. How many of us could live through that? Now, let's come out in full force and overflow the stadium. If the numbers predicted show up, then believe me, it will send a message to Umno - buck up. Reform is here to stay in Malaysia.

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