Police Fire Tear Gas as Thousands Defy Malaysian Protest Ban
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Police fired tear gas and fought with protesters in Kuala Lumpur today as thousands of people marched calling for “reform” and cleaner elections, defying a new government ban on street protests in Malaysia before national polls expected this year.
Police also used water cannons as protesters threw shoes, bottles and chairs while trying to break through barricades to enter a square where the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections, or Bersih, wanted to hold a sit-in. Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government enacted legislation this month banning such protests after police detained more than 1,600 people during a similar rally in July.