It was 8.25 am when I got out of my car parked at the St.
Mary’s Cathedral, all geared up for my first taste of demonstration for the
cause of justice.
I paused for a while, pondering what justice are we talking about? The
independence of the Judiciary. The latest scandal of a video footage
demonstrating a prominent lawyer brokering the appointment of judges in our
country has marred the image of democracy and the 50 years of independence that
we so lavishly celebrated on 31 of August 2007.
If the video footage is authentic, it reinforces the
suspicion that the rule of law in our country has been but a mere illusion. How
much faith can you have in the Judiciary to decide a dispute when suspicion
looms over our head that a judge could be bought over or tampered by the
Executive. The problem should be nipped in the butt and action taken by the
appropriate authorities.
As I debated with my conscience, the church keeper surprised me with his
statement “You must be joining the march in Putrajaya.” With a smile I proudly
said yes. Curiosity came over me as to how he was so certain of my intentions.
Apparently there were a few before me who were also headed towards Dataran
Merdeka for the march.
The walk to Dataran Merdeka around 8.35 am brought about mixed emotions. There
were 7 impressive buses prepared by the Bar Council but unexpectedly, only a
small turnout of lawyers. The Bar Council staff no doubt came in full force but
what happened to the lawyers? Slightly jilted, I nevertheless kept my hopes high
that lawyers would turn up. Within half an hour the number of lawyers swelled.
By the time the buses left approximately at 9.50 am, there were 6 buses headed
towards the Palace of Justice with approximately 200 passengers. As I was given
the task to be responsible for the bus that I was in, I briefed the eager
passengers of the do’s and dont’s at the scheduled march. It was reassuring to
see familiar members of the Bar and respected lawyers joining the march. There
were members of the press as well as non–members of the Bar sharing the bus that
I was in.
The journey to Putrajaya had a cordial air to it. It was not noisy but yet it
was bustling with anticipation of what awaited us at Putrajaya. For those who
were inexperienced and demonstrating for the first time such as myself, it was
not strange to have a slight sense of fear of the consequences of our actions.
We have witnessed and been warned countless of times through the actions of
others that having to assemble and march without a permit had the susceptibility
of bitter confrontations and clashes with the authorities. However, that was not
enough for us to turn away from the cause which made us board the bus.
As we reached Putrajaya, there were police officers stationed at roads leading
to the Palace of Justice. Nearing Precinct 1, all the buses were prevented from
proceeding further. Negotiators proceeded to persuade the police officers over
our continued free passage to the Palace. Reporters and photographers on board
the buses availed themselves to the opportunity of recording the untoward
incident. 20 minutes passed and it became apparent that we had to walk all the
way to the Palace. The roadblocks merely fuelled everyone’s determination to
walk to the designated spot no matter how far it was. We carried what we could –
water bottles, caps and banners.
The tour guide, Julie and our reliable driver, Roslan were compassionate to our
predicament. They could not stop offering assistance by assuring that if they
managed to get in front of the Prime Minister’s Office, they would give me a
call. What display of camaraderie, I thought to myself.
On our way to the Palace by foot, lawyers who came in cars offered to ferry as
many as they could. The sooner everyone got there the sooner the march could
take place. Hence I boarded a car driven by a fellow lawyer, Gan.
The numbers on foot soon became fewer and fewer. Lim Chee Wee, Rajen Devaraj,
Amer Hamzah, Edmund Bon, Roger Chan, Sunil Lopez and a few others who took upon
themselves to overlook the group who boarded the buses remained behind.
It became apparent as I was heading towards the Palace that the authorities had
instructions to prevent any vehicle which had anything to do the Bar Council’s
cause. Roads leading to the Palace were heavily guarded and cars ferrying
hopeful participants of the march were turned away. However, thanks to Gan who
knew the back way to the Palace of Justice, we managed to reach there.
Three to four police trucks were seen parked behind the Palace. I thought to
myself – are they expecting to make arrests? As I reached the front of the
Palace, more security measures were visible. The Federal Reserve Unit, the water
canon truck and other vehicles to disperse an assembly were present on standby.
For a moment, I had this rush of excitement like I was in a war–torn country.
The vision in front of the Palace was a different story. I was flabbergasted by
the sheer number of people who had already gathered. Speechless as I was, I knew
then that the event was going to be one to be remembered. The ‘who’s who’ in the
legal fraternity was there to lend support. The President of the Bar, Ambiga
Sreenevasan gave a steering speech. Two memorandums were to be presented to the
political secretary to the Prime Minister – one to set up an independent
judicial appointments commission and another calling for the formation of a
Royal Commission to investigate the infamous recording and the state of the
Judiciary. However, the march to the Prime Minister’s Office was only to
commence once the participants on foot arrive.
The weather which was promising until 11.00 am suddenly became scorching hot.
Those patiently waiting for the others to arrive started to worry. More
volunteers were deployed to pick as many participants on foot as possible.
Close to 11.50am, the remaining participants on foot who walked for
approximately 5 kilometres arrived. They were greeted with a thunderous
applause. Few minutes were spared before the march began.
When the march began, we were close to 2,000 strong consisting of lawyers,
members of the public and the media. We made our way to the pedestrian walk in
the middle of the road leading to the Prime Minister’s Office. The unsteady heat
hardly deterred anyone’s spirit. There were a few glitches when the march was
prevented from proceeding further by the authorities but their attempts were
foiled as we marched on.
Nearing the Prime Minister’s Office, it started to drizzle. The Bar’s office
bearers entered the building to hand over the memorandums while the rest
peacefully stayed outside at Dataran Putra in the rain which had garnered force
by then.
Soaking wet and cold, Amer Hamzah and Edmund Bon lifted the spirits of many by
chanting “Who are we?” followed by “Malaysian Bar”. Other slogans included
“Siasat–siasat all the way”, “We want justice”, “Free the Judiciary” and
“Change, change change”. A helicopter hovered over us merely tickled the
imaginations of many. Some made comments hoping that the helicopter did not
crash on our heads whilst others just waved and flashed a smile.
Around 1.00pm I received a call from Julie. I was informed that Roslan managed
to make his way to Dataran Putra and they could pick anyone who needed a lift
back to Dataran Merdeka after the event. What a relief!
After disappearing for about 40 minutes, the office–bearers finally returned.
The memorandums were successfully handed over. It was announced that the Prime
Minister would schedule a meeting with the Bar as soon as possible.
The message has been sent. The Malaysian Bar does not stand idle in the face of
injustices. The video clip is merely one of the many revelations against the
Judiciary. It is high time that matters are taken seriously to restore the faith
in the Judiciary.
Feeling cold and utterly drenched, our minds were finally put at ease.
The demonstration was peaceful yet meaningful. There was no violence or threats hurled against the crowd.
We finally dispersed around 1.30 pm. Many who earlier came by bus managed to hitch a ride with their fellow friends. I returned to my faithful bus driver and tour guide together with a few others.
All I can say is – what a day!