ILLEGAL ASSEMBLY WILL TARNISH MALAYSIA'S GOOD IMAGE - ANALYSTS

By Mohd Noor Firdaus Mohd Azil

KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 (Bernama) -- The organiser of the illegal assembly set
for July 9, is hell-bent in tarnishing Malaysia's image as a nation blessed
with peace, harmony and prosperity, according to several political analysts.

They said one of the hidden agendas of the organiser was to leave a black
mark in the nation's history, apart from distracting the people's attention from
the pending sodomy court case involving a leading Opposition political leader.

Non-government organisation 1Agenda chairman Zul Azhar Cha, who is also a
blogger, said he had information that the organiser had invited the
international media to give wide coverage to the illegal assembly.

He recently lodged a police report against the assembly.

Previously, similar illegal assemblies were held in 1998 and 2007, resulting

in street demonstrations which in turn, causing inconvenience to the public and
damage to public property, attracting bad publicity from the international
media.

According to a lecturer in politics and international studies from
Universiti Utara Malaysia, Kedah, Md Shukri Shuib, while the damage to the
streets was bad, the bad publicity generated by international news agencies was
worse.

He said, Malaysia then was portrayed as no longer a paradise for shoppers
and tourists.

"Instead, it deemed as being in a chaotic state, with images and false and
one-sided information fed by a certain 'reform' group," he told Bernama
recently.

However, the lecturer believed that the majority of Malaysians were much
wiser than to blindly let themselves be taken in by the 'wayang kulit'
orchestrated by the organiser.

"What is one hundred thousand in numbers as compared to the millions of
Malaysians who make up the silent majority...the ones who have been enjoying
peace and stability, and quietly supporting the government for the future of
their younger generations,?" he asked.

Businesswoman Zabedah Daud, a political observer in Shah Alam, said, not
many would sympathise with a group which planned to put Malaysia in limbo for
its own political gains when the current government had tackled almost every
issue.

"How can they (organiser of illegal assembly) say they want a fair election
when it is already fair as fair can be?

"I think, if the Election Commission is not fair or more pro-Barisan
Nasional government, would the opposition have won the five states in the last
general election,?" asked the grandmother of 18 grandchildren.

Stressing that the future of a stable and peaceful Malaysia was of utmost
importance to her, and for the sake of her grandchildren, Zabedah hoped wisdom
would prevail.

She urged the organiser of the illegal rally to abandon the planned illegal
gathering which would bring nothing positive to the country.

Admitting that she could make reasonable guess on the hidden agenda of
the illegal rally, she asked:

"Is the ambition of one man to become the prime minister, more important
than the future of 27 million Malaysians?"

-- BERNAMA