Malaysia’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim delivers his speech during a rally in protest against Sunday’s election results at a stadium in Kelana Jaya, outside Kuala Lumpur, on Wednesday night.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim called a protest tour over elections he says the ruling regime stole, as the White House urged authorities to “address concerns” about voter fraud.
Anwar addressed a rally of supporters dressed in black, to protest Sunday’s polls, who filled a stadium and spilled out into surrounding areas, swamping a corner of the capital Kuala Lumpur in hours-long gridlock.
Declaring the elections the “death of democracy”, he called for a sustained campaign against electoral bias and cheating that he says props up an “arrogant, racist regime”.
“We will go to every corner of this country,” Anwar declared, prompting roars from the multi-racial crowd.
“We will continue to struggle and we will never surrender!”
The huge turnout and the charismatic Anwar’s call for similar rallies across the country upped the ante in a campaign by the opposition to paint the elections as a fraudulent victory for the regime that has ruled Malaysia for 56 years.
Anwar has said he would soon produce evidence to prove the elections were riddled with fraud by what he calls an “illegitimate” Barisan Nasional (National Front) government headed by Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Najib’s government has denied the allegations and urged its opponents to accept the result gracefully.
A spokesman for President Barack Obama congratulated Najib on the win but said: “We note concerns regarding reported irregularities in the conduct of the election, and believe it is important that Malaysian authorities address concerns that have been raised.” Jay Carney said: “We look forward to the outcome of their investigations.”
Najib said before Wednesday’s rally that the gathering was “calculated to create unrest”. But the crowd was more festive than angry, waving opposition party flags and sounding vuvuzela horns.
Anwar has battled Barisan since he was ousted from its top ranks in 1998 and jailed for six years on sex and corruption charges widely seen as trumped-up.
Hisan Hamzah, police chief of the state of Selangor where the rally took place, said he may pursue sedition charges against most of the 33 speakers at the rally. He would not confirm if Anwar would be among them.
“This is a very serious offence,” he said, declining to give details. Sedition carries a penalty of up to five year’s jail.
The announcement was condemned by Anwar’s party as a “politically motivated threat” to silence opposition.
Rafizi Ramli, an official from his party, said two rallies were planned for the weekend in northern states, including Anwar’s home state of Penang, with another two early next week on the east coast and in the south.
Agencies
