July 9, 2011 -- A Day To Be Remembered

July 9, 2011 is a day to be remembered when Malaysians of all races unite together for one cause....a clean and fair electoral reform. Hubby's office was closed for that fateful day and from the minute we woke up at 9am both our eyes were fixed on the TV screen and computer screen avidly watching those brave fearless Malaysians take a stand for a fair and clean election.

News, photos and videos came in from the public on the ground as well as the media covering the event. I wish I had saved or downloaded all of them on Saturday as it is a bit hard to keep track of everything when it is all over the internet.

The purpose of this blog is to record this for future generations down the road to see for themselves what really happened that day. Especially since the government of the day is denying police brutality or firing teargas and water cannons into a hospital premises.

It was organized by Bersih.org. 

Bersih means clean in Malay. It is the electoral watchdog comprised of sixty-two NGOs. One of the NGO is Marina Mahathir, the daughter of former premier Mahathir Mohammad. A permit was applied for a peaceful assembly to present an eight-point-memorandum to the King but the police turned down the application and declared the organization and rally illegal.

What is the eight-point-memorandum that Bersih wanted to submit to the King? 

1. Clean the electoral roll
2. Reform postal voting
3. Use of indelible ink
4. A minimum campaign period of 21 days
5. Free and fair access to mainstream media
6. Strengthen public institutions
7. Stop corruption
8. Stop dirty politics