| |
| |
![]() |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysian police on Friday fired a water cannon to break up an anti-government rally, after protesters campaigning against a fuel price hike defied an order to disperse, witnesses said.
There were chaotic scenes as the demonstrators left the landmark Petronas Twin Towers where some 800 people had staged a sit in, and marched down a main city thoroughfare, pursued by dozens of riot police who fired water at them.
The protesters scattered to find shelter in nearby buildings, while others ran through the busy afternoon traffic, bringing it to a standstill.
Police armed with batons, rifles and shields stood in formation in front of the water cannon to prevent the crowd moving any further, leading to a stand-off with about 50 protesters, many of them from opposition groups.
They chanted "Reformasi", the rallying cry of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim who was sacked and jailed in 1998 on corruption and sodomy charges, and then released in 2004.
The protesters had earlier rallied peacefully for about one and a half hours for the second straight week, demanding that the nation's leaders either resign or reverse a recent fuel price hike.
The crowd led by opposition parties and rights groups marched from a city mosque after Friday prayers, chanting "Long live the people" and calling for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to quit.
The United States embassy had warned its citizens in a circular to avoid the busy shopping district during the Friday afternoon protest.
Last week the price of petrol and diesel was raised by 30 sen per litre to about 1.90 ringgit (51 US cents) and 1.58 ringgit (43 US cents) respectively in the biggest of five hikes since May 2004.
Pump prices remain lower than in neighbouring nations, but the move touched off public outrage in a country that is a net oil exporter and where public transport is poor and people are dependent on their vehicles. - AFP/de
|
