Police Attack Anti-ISA Vigil

I was almost there.

Almost.

But I stayed home cos the past few days had been very hectic for my family and I was pooped. I actually wanted to go. I already had my paper cups and I was thinking of decorating them with "No to ISA", "Yes to Freedom & Justice", etc.

But thank God, I changed my mind.

According to reports the roads leading to the field where the vigil was supposed to be held were sealed by police since the early evening. Then as people gathered, the FRU surrounded the crowd. At first, they harassed the crowd to the Amcorp Mall parking lot. Then they harassed them to the PJ Civic Centre.

There a few bloggers spoke. The last one to speak was RPK. Then as the people were singing Negaraku, the cops stormed in. 24 people were arrested, including 2 State Assemblymen and an MP. Also arrested was Father Paulino, a Catholic priest.

How are men, women, children who are participating in a quiet gathering such a danger to society that fully armed riot police have to be unleashed on them? How are politicians advocating a just and fair society and a Catholic priest a danger to society? I fail to see any reasonable reason why the vigil had to be stormed.

I had been to one of the vigils a couple of weeks ago. It was a very quiet affair. People gathered. Lighted candles. Talked politics. Mostly, people just sat/walked around, smiled at each other. A coffee shop at lunch time was more noisy that the 300 people gathered at that place!

Why? Why? Why?

And to think that I wanted to bring my family there yesterday as part of their political awakening as citizens in this dear land of ours.

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I post here some info from Wikipedia about the Gestapo - Nazi Germany's ruthless and much-feared secret police. You may draw your own conclusions...

"The Gestapo had the authority to investigate treason, espionage and sabotage cases, and cases of criminal attacks on the Nazi Party and Germany."

"The power of the Gestapo most open to misuse was called Schutzhaft - 'protective custody', a euphemism for the power to imprison people without judicial proceedings."

"By February and March 1942, student protests were calling for an end to the Nazi regime. These included the non-violent resistance of Hans and Sophie Scholl, two leaders of the White Rose student group. However, resistance groups and those who were in moral or political opposition to the Nazis were stalled by the fear of reprisals from the Gestapo. In fact, reprisals did come in response to the protests. Fearful of an internal overthrow, the forces of Himmler and the Gestapo were unleashed on the opposition. The first five months of 1943 witnessed thousands of arrests and executions as the Gestapo exercised their powers over the German public."

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I for one will not allow our beloved Malaysia to become a Gestapo State!

P.S. The Nazi regime eventually collapsed under the weight of their own evil, done in by their own greed, pride and lust for power.