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28 July 2011

Space station to drop into ocean in 2020

NEWS

Russia and its partners plan to let the International Space Station fall into the ocean when it reaches the end of its lifecycle in 2020, according to a new report.

ISS

The International Space Station will be pulled out of its orbit and allowed to fall into the sea when it ends its lifespan in 2020. Photo credit: Nasa

Agence France-Presse reports that the Russian space agency's reason is simple: left alone, the ISS poses great risk as an enormous bundle of space junk.

Read this

Space station marks 10 years in service

Read more

"After it completes its existence, we will be forced to sink the ISS. It cannot be left in orbit, it's too complex, too heavy an object, it can leave behind lots of rubbish," deputy head of Roskosmos space agency Vitaly Davydov reportedly said.

The ISS, home to scientific experiments since its launch in 1998, orbits 220 miles above Earth's surface and hosts researchers hailing from Russia, the US, Europe, Japan and Canada. It was originally planned to operate through 2013, but its service was officially extended last year through 2020.

However, it is still unclear whether a final decision has been made to junk the space station. CBS News space analyst William Harwood noted that the ISS would need more funding if it goes beyond its 2020 end date. It is unclear whether the partner nations are of a mind to invest more money, given shrinking budgets and other pressing domestic priorities.

But whenever funding runs out, they will, in fact, crash it into the atmosphere so the debris falls in the Pacific, well away from populated areas. That is standard procedure for something like this, according to Harwood.

"They can't just leave it up on its own; everything in low Earth orbit will eventually fall back to Earth," Harwood noted. "With something as large as the station, they'll do a targeted re-entry to make sure it doesn't rain down on, say, New York."

With something as large as the station, they'll do a targeted re-entry to make sure it doesn't rain down on, say, New York.

– William Harwood, space analyst

Whenever its final plunge arrives, the ISS will follow in the footsteps of its predecessor, Russia's Mir, which was sunk into the Pacific Ocean in 2001.

At one point in its history, the ISS was talked about as a possible staging base for future missions to the Moon and Mars. But those plans fell by the wayside as the US shifted its plans for space exploration toward the use of unmanned probes. Last week, Nasa marked the return of its final space shuttle Atlantis from a trip to the ISS.

With one of its main customers calling it quits, the concept of an orbiting space station — not to mention the concomitant expense to maintain the base — has lost much of its allure. The news about the future of the space station comes on the heels of China's announcement that it isreadying its first space station module for launch.

CBS staff contributed to this story.

For more on this ZDNet UK-selected story, see International Space Station to fall into ocean in 2020 on SmartPlanet.

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We are not alone

BBC

Artist's concept provided by NASA illustrates the first known Earth Trojan asteroidArtist's impression of the obit of the Trojan asteroid

Related Stories

Astronomers using Nasa's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (Wise) have spotted Earth's first "Trojan" asteroid.

Trojans are asteroids that share the same orbital path as a planet (see the Nasa animation), but because the constantly lead or follow on behind, they're incredibly difficult to spot from the ground.

The side-on view we have of the rest of the solar system means that trojans orbiting other planets are much easier to spot. Neptune, Mars and Jupiter all have them, and scientists have speculated that the earth too might have its own shadowy doppelganger.

Using the perspective offered by the Earth-orbiting Wise telescope, the team - lead by Martin Connors at the Athabasca University in Canada - set out to confirm that theory by scanning the entire sky in infrared light. They spotted two candidate asteroids, one of which has now been confirmed as Earth's first true trojan.

"Wise is a game changer" says Dr Connors, "these asteroids dwell mostly in the daylight making them very hard to see. But we finally found one."

A lump of rock and ice some 300 metres across, asteroid 2010 TK7, follows a complex spiral path some 80 million kilometres from Earth.

"It's as though earth is playing follow my leader" says Amy Mainzer, the project's principal investigator at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. "Earth is just chasing this asteroid around."

Although close in astronomical terms, the team say there's no chance 2010 TK7 will collide with Earth. The asteroid's orbit has been plotted over the next 100 years, showing the closest it will come is 24 million kilometres from our planet.

Still, now at least we know its there.

21 July 2011

Bad news for Najib: French police have found "crucial" Scorpene documents

Bad news for Najib: French police have found "crucial" Scorpene documents


Bad news for Najib: French police have found "crucial" Scorpene documents

French police have obtained "quite crucial documents" in the Scorpene submarines probe on whether French arms giant DCN had paid kickbacks to Malaysian officials, including Prime Minister Najib Razak, to secure the deal.

The 58-year old Najib had been the Defense minister sanctioning the acquisition in 2002. Even then, there had been much public unhappiness over the price which was seen as too expensive, and furthernore, the high-tech submarines considered as unsuitable for patrolling the country's shallow coastline. Right now, both ships are docked in Sabah and hardly used. There have also been reports of system malfunctions due to the unsuitability of the territorial waters.

"It is likely that in September we should have access to the first police conclusions from all the investigations that have taken place over the last 18 months. We know that the police seem to have obtained quite crucial documents," Asia Sentinel reported Paris-based lawyer William Bourdon assaying.

VIP personality

William is one of the French lawyers appointed by Malaysian NGO Suaram, which lodged a complaint on behalf of taxpayers against DCN for corruptly sealing the contract. It is illegal in France to offer bribes to secure a deal and if found guilty, DCN may have to pay compensation to Malaysian taxpayers for overcharging on the final price paid by the Malaysian government.

The French lawyer is due to arrive on Thursday, where he will speak to a Penang audience and brief them on the latest developments in the case. Suaram has already hinted that William will touch on the identities of several 'new' personalities involved in the kickbacks.

It is also believed that French investigators have managed to pin down a very important personality, who travelled with submarines negotiator Razak Baginda and murdered Mongolian translator, Altantuya Shaariibuu, to Macau as part of the complex negotiations.

There is red-hot speculation that this person is Najib himself. If true, it will blow away the PM's previous denials he never knew Altantuya, who is believed to have been his lover before he "passed" her onto Razak, who was his confidante and representative. Such evidence paves the way for the re-opening of her murder trial, which had ended with two of Najib's former bodyguards being sentenced to hang for her 2006 killing. However, the 'mastermind' is believed to be still at large.

Lesser personalities involved in the sprawling deal have also been traced and their identities likely to be revealed as well.

William is also expected to drop a new bombshell - previously unknown commissions that have just been uncovered by the investigators. This will add to the growing list of murky details shrouding the shady acquisition engineereed and pushed for by Najib years ago, when he was the Defense minister directly in charge of key military procurements.

No more secret places left for Najib

It looks like unless the French government is willing to help him out and muzzle the case, Najib may have run out of hiding places. Whatever time that he can buy will not last long either.

And to pundits familar with all the ramifications both at the Malaysian and French ends, it is impossible for him to escape scot-free. One way or another, they say he will have to explain to his people the true extent of his involvement, not just in the kickbacks but also in the Altantuya murder.

In fact, not even his UMNO party can save him. With the Scorpenes trial expected to be heard in the French open court in August or September, many of the party warlords are already gearing up to push him out and slam the door on his administration, which has been scarred by non-achievement, gutter politics and extensive corruption.

It does not help that in recent months, Najib has felt the pressure and added to his own discomfort by making several disastrous decisions. The most recent was ordering a violent crackdown on a citizens rally for free and fair elections two weeks ago. His fast-fading popularity and plunging credibility makes him an easy target now.

Rightfully, the BN government should have immediately lodged a compliant with the French authorities when news reports about the huge Scorpene kickbacks first came to light. However due to Najib's influence, no one in the Malaysian government has dared to call for a public probe so far.

Even a suspicious 114 million euros (RM570 million) side-deal granted to Baginda's firm, Perimekar, has been whitewashed in Parliament as a "services" and "maintenance" contract, when it is obvious that the obscure firm has no experience or track-record in such a high-tech industry.

Numerous reports have also been lodged by Malaysian citizens, who are alarmed that the RM7 billion price tag is still climbing. It is now apparent Najib may have hidden the full cost to Parliament, opting to gradually seek additional budget allocations to maintain the ships rather than to reveal at one-go the full 'damage' to taxpayers. Yet till now, Malaysian police as well as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission have refused to initiate any investigation into the file at all.

Seamy details in a sordid deal

Numerous questions are likely to be asked by those attending the Suaram-organised sessions with William on 21, 22 and 23rd Jruly. Apart from the status of the case, the latest 'dirt' dug out so far, the greatest interest will surely centre around the beautiful but tragic Altantuya, who acted as translator for Baginda.

Uppermost on Malaysian minds are exactly what sort of relationship Najib had with her. Not that they are voyeurs and wish to nose out all the seamy details of the love affair the two allegedly had, but because they want to know how much and to what extent their PM - who was then the DPM - was willing to lie and may have lied just to become prime minister.

"If you want to know all these details, you have to come for the dinner, listen and ask," Suaram director Cynthia Gabriel told Malaysia Chronicle.

- Malaysia Chronicle

20 July 2011

30,000 fans flock to see 'The Blues' in training

 

KUALA LUMPUR: More than 30,000 local and foreign fans of English Premier League club, Chelsea FC, flocked to the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil, here tonight to watch their favourite team undergo a training session.

Fans from as far as Europe, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand came as early as 4pm, although the training session only started at 7pm.

Most of them sporting the team's jersey were ecstatic to watch their favourite players right in front of their eyes.

The team touched down in Malaysia yesterday, for their first pre-season match against a Malaysian selection on Thursday (July 21) at 8.45pm.

All of the 26 Chelsea players, including team captain, John Terry, Petr Cech, Ashley Cole, Nicolas Anelka, Fernando Torres and Frank Lampard were present during the more than an hour training session.

The team under the guidance of Andres Villa-Boas will be meeting Malaysian selection, a combination of the Harimau Muda and Harimau Malaya team, at the National Stadium at 8.45pm on July 21.

This was the team's third appearance in Malaysia.

In 2003, the team defeated Malaysia 4-1 in the FA Premier League (FAPL) Asia Cup at the National Stadium and in 2008, they beat Malaysia 2-0 in their final leg of the 2008 Asia Tour at the Shah Alam Stadium.

After Malaysia, the team will meet Thailand All Stars at the Rajamangala Stadium on July 24.

Chelsea will then play two games in the Barclays Asia Trophy in Hong Kong, namely against Hong Kong champion Kitchee FC on July 27 and the winners will face either Aston Villa or Blackburn in the final on July 30. - BERNAMA

TORRES FEELING GOOD

Posted on: Sat 16 Jul 2011

Today marks the start of a busy couple of weeks for the Blues, with a trip to Portsmouth this afternoon followed by departure for our Asian tour tomorrow.

For Fernando Torres, it comes after a lengthy break from football at the end of last season, but a return to goalscoring form against Wycombe Wanderers at Cobham on Tuesday.

The striker is now looking ahead to an exciting pre-season period starting at Fratton Park this afternoon before games in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Hong Kong, where we will compete for the Barclays Asia Trophy.

It is a competition the Spaniard knows well, having taken part with former club Liverpool upon signing there in 2007, losing a penalty shootout in the final against... Portsmouth.

'I missed a penalty, and the other one was Yossi Benayoun,' Torres smiled as he recalled the situation in Hong Kong. 'I remember it because I didn't play in the first game against South China because I didn't have the clearance from my transfer, so I couldn't play in the tournament but I travelled just in case, not expecting to play in that game.

'I was in the stand and was sitting in my seat to watch the game with Portsmouth when some people from Liverpool called me back and said I could play, so I changed, played and missed a penalty so we lost the final to Portsmouth.'

Despite the disappointment, he began that season in sparkling form, opening his Anfield account by netting against us in a 1-1 draw, and he believes competitive football in pre-season can only help your readiness for when things get going in the Premier League.

'It's good to have a competition, the main thing is to be fit and find your good form so you can start the season as well as possible,' said the 27-year-old. 'It is good to play against good teams, and in Hong Kong we will also play a Premier League team and it is natural to be more focused on the game. We want to win and show we are better than the other teams, it is the first challenge to balance if the season is going to be good or not.'

On a personal level, Torres has begun pre-season well with a tidy finish against Wycombe to show for 45 minutes of work, the profit he believes of a timely rest.

'I'm feeling good, it's a new season, a new start for me,' he said. 'It was a difficult four months last season but now I am already settled and happy, feeling sharper and I could enjoy my holidays in the summer after five years without a break so I am happier after some time with my family and a rest and I feel ready to start the season.'

The former Atletico Madrid man also had encouraging words for Benayoun, who netted a cheeky firstpre-season goal on Tuesday.

'Yossi was unlucky last season with the injury he had but now he is fully recovered and you could see the other day his quality, so now it is just a matter of form and he is back,' he said.

The Portsmouth game is live on Chelsea TV with free build-up for all Sky Digital subscribers between 2.30pm and 3pm.

Intel showcases technology with "Cloud-In-A-Box"

 

Intel Cloud In A  Box

Intel Cloud In A Box

Billing it as “the world’s smallest datacenter” Intel’s cloud technology demonstrator is basically two 1U servers in a package that fits into a common rolling suitcase. Designed to show that Intel is already powering the cloud with its Xeon processors, the technology demonstration is also meant to highlight Intel’s other efforts to bring their Cloud 2015 vision to reality.

The servers are used to demonstrate a variety of Intel technologies, starting with the latest advances in the Xeon processor family, including support for hardware-based encryption and Intel’s Trusted Execution Technology, which focuses on security at the hypervisor level and below. Since we are talking about demonstrating cloud technologies, Intel’s hardware Virtualization Technology is also heavily featured.

Multiple boxes in the demonstrator mean that they can demonstrate the Intelligent Power Node Manager which allows administrators to set power budgets for managed devices. Beyond the hardware level, Intel’s single-sign on software technologies, Expressway Access 360 and the Expressway Gateway Service are part of the basic demonstration capabilities.

This is clearly designed as a portable technology demonstration tool and it doesn’t seem that Intel is looking to actively sell this device to customers at this time. But there is definitely a market for this cloud-in-a-box, or at least a commercial version with additional bells and whistles for organizations that need to be able to deploy secure services in remote locations, vendors looking to do on-site demonstrations of their products for the private cloud, and even for IT departments looking to develop operational practices in a test network, rather than a live production environment.

The hardware package also fits well into the concept of a distributed computing environment with micro-datacenters scattered throughout a geographically dispersed area, that are all components of a larger, virtual, computing effort.  It’s an interesting little device, and may have more potential than just as a technology demonstration.

Apple's corporate iPhone, iPad app strength bad news for rivals

 

Apple appears to be extending its lead in the enterprise with the tag team of the iPhone and iPad. Meanwhile, some corporate customers are developing custom iOS apps for their employees.

On Apple’s third quarter conference call—following blowout earnings—CFO Peter Oppenheimer noted some serious enterprise strength. Here’s what he said about the iPhone.

iPhone continues to be adopted as a standard across the enterprise, with 91% of the Fortune 500 deployed or testing the device, up from 88% last quarter. We are also seeing great growth in scale worldwide. Today 57% of Global 500 companies are testing or deploying iPhone, fueled by strong employee demand and opportunities for custom app development.

The key element there is “opportunities for custom app development.” If corporations start developing iOS corporate apps, the chances of them suddenly dropping Apple are slim. After all, corporations developed applications for Microsoft’s IE 6 and still have them even though the browser is antique and the software giant is begging them to ditch its ancient version of Explorer.

Also:

10 iPad 2 apps for business

Oppenheimer also cited global strength for corporate iPhone adoption. He cited Axa, Credit Agriole, Nestle and Dow Chemical as companies officially supporting the iPhone.

The pull of the iPhone is also rubbing off on the iPad. This point is also quite relevant to Apple table rivals, which are largely aiming at the enterprise.

On the iPhone front, Oppenheimer said:

Today 86% of the Fortune 500 are deploying or testing iPad within their enterprises, up from 75% last quarter. We are also seeing strong adoption internationally with 47% of Global 500 companies testing or deploying iPad. In the 15 months since iPad has shipped, we have seen iPad used in the enterprise in ways we could have never imagined.

Oppenheimer cited iPad wins at Boston Scientific, Xerox and Salesforce.com. He also cited hospital wins, which illustrates some vertical strength. He added:

General Electric, SAP and Standard Charter have developed internal apps for training, currency tracking and business process management to help make employees even more productive. Alaska Airlines and American Airlines are using the iPad in cockpits to replace paper-based navigational and reference information pilots carry with them on every flight. We continue to be delighted by the diverse and sometimes unexpected use cases we see around iPads.

Again, the key theme here is corporate apps. If enterprises develop on iOS they aren’t going to budge for years.

MALAYSIA VS CHELSEA (SEE IT LIVE..!!)

image

PRE-SEASON ACTION ONLY ON CHELSEA TV

Posted on: Tue 28 Jun 2011

Chelsea TV is your passport to all the action this summer as we will be showing four exclusive pre-season fixtures including the first three games under new manager Andre Villas-Boas LIVE on Chelsea TV. Our summer action kicks off against Portsmouth on Saturday 16 July, concluding with exclusive coverage of our match against Glasgow Rangers as live on Saturday 6 August.

There will also be full match coverage from Chelsea's participation in the Barclays Asia Trophy being held in Hong Kong involving Aston Villa, Blackburn and the winners of the Hong Kong First Division, Kitchee.

Don't miss out on your chance to watch the Blues return under a new manager plus any new players in action first - remember you can watch Chelsea TV wherever you maybe on the TV, PC and video-on-demand on via the mobile app. 

The summer line-up looks like this:

Live & Exclusive coverage
Saturday 16 July - Portsmouth 0 Chelsea 1 (Highlights on Chelsea TV)
Thursday 21 July 1.15pm - Malaysia XI v Chelsea
Sunday 24 July 11.15am- Thailand All Stars v Chelsea

Full match coverage - Barclays Asia Trophy
Wednesday 27 July 10pm - Kitchee v Chelsea
Saturday 30 July 10pm - Aston Villa/Blackburn v Chelsea

Exclusive on Chelsea TV
Saturday 6 August - Rangers v Chelsea

Share your views on pre-season during our Pre-season Live phone-in show on Friday 22 July, Friday 29 July & Friday 5 August at 6.30pm - 7.15pm. What's more, to keep in-the-loop over the summer, our daily news show Blues News has all the latest news, exclusive interviews and live training sessions.

14 July 2011

what is six sigma methodology..?

find your answer here about six sigma which widely used in all industries to solve problems and analysis purpose.

 

six sigma power point presentation

11 July 2011

The truth about Bersih 2.0

 

 

my tears fall off after seeing this…..

Bersih aftermath…..

 

By Clara Chooi

July 11, 2011

The petition’s starter threatened to abandon Najib if his administration does not address his demands. — file pic

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — Anti-Bersih supporters have mounted a petition online, threatening to abandon its support for Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s administration if the prime minister fails to revoke the citizenships of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Datuk Ambiga Sreenavasan and punish Bersih marchers.

Pledging one million signatures, the petition started by one Rahmat Azim Abd Aziz, 39, warns Najib against ignoring its five demands, saying its signatories would not hesitate to rebel to defend Malaysia, “even without the help of Datuk Seri’s (Najib) government”.

As of 8pm today, the petition entitled, “Legal action and recommendations to His Royal Highness the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia to revoke medals and accolades” has attracted 173 signatures.

It was created on petitiononline.com, a site that hosts online public petitions for free, but Facebook users have since caught wind of it and are sharing links to the site on fan pages and their profile pages, urging others to sign it.

“If Datuk Seri (Najib) does not take stern action and monitor subversive elements and efforts to tarnish the country’s image, Malaysians will lose direction and faith in your leadership.

“When this happens, traitors to the country will find it easier to take over our beloved Malaysia. Datuk Seri’s efforts will become pointless and the futures of our youths will become uncertain,” the petition said.

Claiming to represent the views of a majority of the government’s supporters, the petition urged that its demands be given “full and serious” consideration, saying that “peace, harmony, unity and Malaysia’s economic strength” are important elements for the present and coming generations.

“Racism and disunity have become more widespread due to incitement from opposition parties, NGOs and foreign agents. We want stability, economic strength and unity.

“All of Datuk Seri’s efforts in developing the economy will be destroyed in the blink of an eye simply because of those who are uncomfortable with seeing progress in Malaysia,” said the petition.

In its demands, the petition called on the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin to revoke the titles of Ambiga, Anwar, PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and national laureate Datuk A. Samad Said.

It also wants Anwar and Ambiga’s citizenships revoked, saying the duo had instigated the people to riot, rebel and defy the country’s rule of law.

It also demands that legal action be taken against any of the 91 individuals who violated a court order obtained by the police barring them from entering the city on July 9.

Among those who were locked out were Ambiga, Anwar, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, and Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali.

The petition also seeks legal action against Bersih 2.0 organisers for supposedly defying the King’s advice, and the over 1,000 protestors who were arrested for participating in an illegal rally.

Pro-Bersih supporters have also started a similar campaign on Facebook through a fan page calling for Najib’s resignation.

The page, which was set up shortly after Saturday’s rally, hit its 100,000 target at 3.50am this morning and has continued growing since then. As at 8pm today, a total of 136, 902 people have clicked “Like” on the page.

The ‘Cleaner’ 1 Malaysia…….

Which Malaysia’s PM Najib referring to in his catchy phrase 1Malaysia? The Malaysia I see him representing is one of tense tolerance always holding a precarious balance in check. A coalition of three main parties divided along racial lines.
Each takes care of its own community, each fights for the same pie for its community. On all sides of the racial divide in Najib's 1Malaysia there are routine threats, name-calling and extremists who insist on ketuanan Melayu.


The other side of Malaysia who came out in the tens of thousands this weekend during the Bersih 2.0 rally represented all segments of Malaysian society.


All races, all generations, all beliefs and religion walked together; all who believed in a more democratic Malaysia. It wasn't that the Chinese walked on one side of the street while the Malays walked on the other or that the Indians walked behind while the Malays walked in front.
We were all in one group singing our national anthem proudly. This was a dream come true that I had once learned in my siviks class in school at the age of 10.
Growing up in the Mahathir era, I never saw it in evidence, and in fact saw more segregation and suspicion and animosity amongst the races.


On Saturday, however, I saw the different races caring for one another. While sharing fresh water from a hose at Puduraya bus station, hosing one another down, a Malay brother shared some salt with me.


We put a pinch of salt each in our mouths, and smiled at each other through our eyes watering from the tear gas, and ran out again to confront the 'other side'. Had we not been pursued by the cops, and in different circumstances, we would have bersalam and hugged and sat down together for kopi tarik.


I even met many Chinese business owners, traditionally well-known for their kiasu-ness (play-safe attitude), last Saturday. Those who had supported change silently in 2008. Enough, they were saying now, braving the police; they too made their point in the march.
We have to reclaim Malaysia from those who are determined to oppress us to stay in power. I am sure that our Malaysia won the approval of our dear Bapa Malaysia and other Malay warriors of the past. He would have smiled approvingly and would have supported us that day.

malaysiakini

09 July 2011

Bersih 2.0: Winners and losers

from the malaysian insider

KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 — So it is settled, after weeks of harassment and thuggish behaviour by the government, the people for free and fair elections will gather in a stadium on July 9.

This episode has once again demonstrated how fractious and divided Malaysia is with enlightened and liberal Malaysia on one side and almost facist powers on the other.

Some individuals emerge from this episode with reputations intact, others with image destroyed forever. The Malaysian Insider gives our take on the winners and losers.

Winners

•    The organisers of Bersih: let’s be honest, until a few weeks ago this was a movement at the periphery of most Malaysians. Okay, so some 100,000 people would have marched on the streets on KL. But thanks to the government's blanket arrests, use of draconian laws and decision to behave like a repressive regime, Bersih became a buzzword. Much to the government’s chagrin, everyone has forgotten about Datuk T, all the wonderful projects under the ETP. Today, people remember Bersih as the people fighting for clean and fair elections, and the Barisan Nasional (BN) government as the people frightened of free and fair elections.

• Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan: She was called names by the prime minister and threatened with having her citizenship revoked by the Malacca chief minister and was under severe pressure from the police and security agencies. But the former Bar Council president did not lose her cool or become rabid like her detractors. She stayed the course and was always civil. Maybe our politicians should take a leaf out of her book.

• The Yang di-Pertuan Agong: his measured last-minute intervention gave the government and Bersih face-saving escape routes from confrontation. This is what Malaysians expect of the monarchy: for them to be honest brokers, not mouthpieces for the ruling party. In all likelihood he was asked by the government to issue the statement on Sunday but it does appear that he was unwilling to demonise Bersih.

• Malaysian public: in the wake of all this talk of riots and tension, the man in the street was unmoved and unconvinced by the fairytale stories of communist plots and Christian funding — a sure sign that the governed are more mature than the government.

Losers

• Datuk Seri Najib Razak: he has now agreed to meet Bersih leaders to discuss the venue for their rally. One has to ask why as the PM he did not engage the activists but instead he allowed them to be demonised by his Umno party. The mishandling of the issue also allowed Malaysia’s image to be tarnished and undid a lot of good work done by good men in the administration. He allowed the hardliners in government and his party to call the shots when he should have been leading from the front.

• Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein: where does one start with this major disappointment of a minister? He left many stumped by his illogical statements and his John Le Carre scenarios. He has ambitions of becoming the country’s prime minister. After this performance it is arguable whether he is the best person for the home ministry portfolio.

• Datuk Ibrahim Ali: he has been at the forefront of the attacks against Ambiga and Bersih. And he has also tried to turn the issue into one of race, to protect Malay rights. But it became abundantly clear that Bersih 2.0 had the support of many Malaysians from different races. It was not about race after all but the issue of free and fair elections.

• The PDRM: the police have made a mockery of the law by arresting people for wearing T-shirts. While it is arguable whether preventive action and detention should still be allowed, arresting people for wearing T-shirts was a ridiculous act. Continuing to detain people under the Emergency Ordinance over the rally is also a classic case of abusing the law. In the end the police should remember that if a permit was granted the rally would not have been illegal. The police must not act as if the country is under siege from its own citizens.

what’s happened at KL: BERSIH 2.0 Rally

 

Photo Gallery

At least five marches have broke out in Petaling Street, near Daya Bumi Complex, Masjid Jamek, Pudu and Sogo and the police have responded by firing tear gas and water cannons.

Later, the marches have converged near the Puduraya-Menara Maybank area. The crowd is estimated to be 10,000 strong. After several unsuccessful attempts to disperse the crowd, a standoff remains.

Meanwhile, Bersih 2.0 chief Ambiga Sreenevasan, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and Batu MP Tian Chua has been arrested.

LIVE REPORTS

The police force is expected to battle with Umno Youth and polls reform coalition Bersih in the streets of Kuala Lumpur as both groups seek to break the blockade to mount two separate protests.
Umno Youth, which is rallying to defend the electoral system, will be congregating in Bukit Bintang at 1.30pm. This was a last-minute change from the earlier announced time of 10am.
Bersih has vowed to gather at the Stadium Merdeka at 2pm to call for wide-ranging reforms to the electoral system which it claims to be unfree and unfair.
Despite roadblocks at key junctions and roads in Kuala Lumpur, traffic is smooth from the low number of vehicles, but traffic is gridlocked at the outskirts as police weed out possible protestors.

The majority of the police are stationed at the favourite haunts for protestors - Dataran Merdeka, the Masjid Jamek area and the Sogo shopping centre.

Vehicles entering this area are being vigorously inspected. There is also heavy police represence at Masjid Negara.

As of 8.30am, LRT services are operating as usual, without any stations inaccessible.

The weather forecast for Kuala Lumpur is a mix of cloud and sun with the possibility of showers or thunderstorms.

Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia kicked off the day with a screaming front-page headline in bold red 'Curfew in KL today?', followed by 'There are people planning to open fire and blame the police for it'.

LIVE REPORTS

NONE7.50am: Masjid Jamek - There is heavy police presence in the vicinity of the mosque. The road fronting the mosque has been sealed off.

7.45am: Masjid Negara - A dozen FRU jeeps and a water cannon truck are stationed at the Jalan Keretapi roundabout opposite the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court complex. No roadblocks are visible, but there are many police personnel in the area.
8am: Jalan Bukit Bintang - The streets of the tourist trap areas in Bukit Bintang are still empty, save for a few cars and a jaywalker. Unlike the other known assembly points for protesters, there is minimal police presence. Umno Youth is expected to rally here at 1.30pm.
8.10am: Tune Hotel - The Jalan Sultan Ismail and Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman interchange are being manned by about 100 police personnel who are inspecting all vehicles entering the area. Tourist appear to be having trouble finding taxis. [See video]

8.25am:
Sogo - The Sogo shopping complex on Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman now looks like a police base. More than 10 police trucks and 100 police personnel are spotted. There is another roadblock here, and every vehicle is being inspected. [See video]

NONE8.30am: Kampung Baru - Nine Bersih 2.0 supporters are nabbed and packed into one of the two police trucks parked near the Kampung Baru mosque. The road to the mosque has been cordoned off.

8.40am: Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman- Bar Council's monitoring team hits the streets donning black suits and a "Observer" tags on their jackets.
"We will monitor the rally and take photographs if necessary. There are about 100 observers from the Bar Council. Some of them are also providing legal aid," said HR Dipendra, who leads a team of 15 observers.

8.45am: PAS headquarters - No uniformed police personnel or police vehicles are being stationed here, but a group of unidentified men has set up a video camera opposite the building. PAS' top leaders are believed to be holed up here.

NONE8.50am: Dataran Merdeka - Police have cordoned off Dataran Merdeka. More than six FRU trucks, including a water cannon truck is being parked here.
Along Jalan Tun Perak, near the Masjid Jamek station, more than a dozen FRU trucks and a water cannon truck were spotted. The area is a favourite haunt of anti-government protestors in the past.
An estimated 300 FRU and other police personnel are stationed in the vicinity.
"Nobody can enter this area," said a uniformed policeman when the reporter tried to enter the area surrounding Dataran Merdeka. [See video]

9.00am: Stadium Merdeka - The route to the stadium from Jalan Maharajalela is being blocked with a barbwire barricade. Journalists who wish to enter the area must register with the police.

NONE9.05am: KL Sentral- Police are inspecting the bags of a group of PAS supporters from Kelantan.

9.15am: DBKL - About 60 police personnel and ten police trucks spotted at the T-junction in front of City Hall.

9.25am: Kampung Baru - Another 18 males have been brought to the police truck, joining the nine detained earlier. The truck is parked in front of the Kampung Baru mosque wich was locked up by the mosque committee about ten minutes ago.

9.35am: IPK KL (state police headquarters) - As of 9am, 21 people had been arrested, according to spokesperson ACP Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf.

Unofficially, an officer at KL IPK says the number of people arrested has exceeded 100.

9.30am: Maju Junction - Four men are being whisked away by the police after police found yellow shirts in one of their bags.
9.35am: Masjid Jamek - Seven people have been detained. It is unsure why. Reporters are now allowed to get near the truck where they are held.
"You cannot be here. Please speak to my officer if you want to enter this area," said a police personnel.

9.40am: Istana Negara - A water cannon truck and riot police were spotted at the area. It seems that this strectch of Jalan Mahameru is completely off limits to vehicles.

NONE9.40am: Bukit Bintang - Near Lot 10 shopping belt, it's holiday as usual for tourists who have started to pour onto the streets and into the malls.
The Umno Youth anti-Bersih rally is expected to start from Bukit Bintang Plaza at noon, before marching to Stadium Merdeka about 2km away.
Some clashes are expected to take place with Bersih 2.0 supporters who are also marching to the stadium.
However, not a single Umno protester is in sight at the moment. About 50 members of the press have also converged in front of the iconic McDonald's at the Jalan Sultan Ismail - Jalan Bukit Bintang junction.
While there are no roadblocks nearby, a handful of plainclothes policemen are seen loitering about holding their walkie talkies tight.

NONE9.45am: Masjid Negara - At least 1,000 Bersih 2.0 have gathered near the former KTM headquarters and are chanting slogans.

9.50am: Masjid Negara - An elderly man approaching the national mosque with the intention of praying has been turned away by the authorities. The number of Bersih 2.0 supporters at the old railway station is growing.

9.55am: Petaling Street - A diminutive retiree, who only wants to be known as Anne, says freedom is precious.
"I am old, but I am walking (with Bersih) because they are taking away my freedom, I can't even wear a yellow shirt now," she said when met.
"When I was young I didn't do anything. I was in the education service and I had to stomach (misgovernance) like sheep because it was my bread and butter," she said.
The feisty woman, who had her details taken down by police this morning for wearing a bright yellow shirt, was part of the Bersih rally in 2007.
She is walking alone today, "because it's easier to work alone".
Asked of her children's reaction to her decision, Anne, who chided a reporter for asking her age, said her children told her to "have a nice walk".
Petaling Street is under a kilometre from the Bersih's final destination Stadium Merdeka.
Police have cordoned off part of the road as well as adjoining Jalan Tan Cheng Lock.
NONE9.55am: Masjid Jamek - More passengers are streaming out of the LRT station. The police are not checking their personal effects but are keeping close watch.

Outside of the Masjid Jamek LRT station, the area along Jalan Tun Perak and Jalan Pudu is crawling with police officers. Some are guarding the entrance of Masjid Jamek.

This spot was one of the major flashpoints during the first Bersih rally in 2007.

10am: Masjid Jamek - Police are seen randomly checking the people's bags in the Masjid Jamek LRT station vicinity.
"They asked me to open my bag and asked me where I came from," says a middle-aged Malay man stopped by the police for a check.
However ,the cops did not find anything suspicious in his bag and let him go.

NONEMasjid Negara - At the old railway station at Jln Sultan Hishamuddin, a 70- year-old man wearing a Pakatan Rakyat vest and serban was arrested along with two helpers when he insisted on going to the national mosque for prayers. The three of them are led off in a police jeep.
Masjid Kg Baru - The surroundings of Jalan Abdullah, Jalan Raja Alang and the masjid are calm with light traffic.
No Bersih supporters or leaders are in sight. The police seem to have the area under control.

10.05am: Masjid Negara - The crowd in the area is rapidly growing. There are now more than 1,000 people, facing off with about 400 police personnel.

No one is allowed inside the national mosque except the police. About 10 police trucks are parked nearby.

NONE10.10am: Sogo - As a steady stream of shoppers enter the mall oblivious to the heavy police presence, one man is seen being whisked away in a police truck. Sogo appears to be the only mall open for business in the vicinity.

10.21am: KLCC - Bersih tweets that there is a police clash with supporters. “Gas canisters used,” it says. Malaysiakini is trying to verify the report.

10.23am: PDRM reports that as at 9am their 'Operasi Polis Perhimpunan 9 Julai 2011' has seen 21 arrests - 20 Malays and one Chinese.

10.25am: Masjid Jamek - There are more arrests around Masjid Jamek LRT station. The police truck parked beside the Masjid Jamek mosque has at least 16 people in it.
NONEEarlier, a man in white shirt was arrested after police stopped and checked his bag. Some fund-raising documents were found but they were not related to Bersih 2.0. The man said that he was raising money at a PAS ceramah.
Soon after, the police nab another four young women clad in tudung as well as three men. None of them was wearing yellow.

10:35am: Stadium Merdeka - Police have set up barbed wire barricades at the two ends of Jalan Stadium, keeping both pedestrians and vehicles out.
However, some 20 press personnel are camped out in front of the stadium.

NONE10.35am: Masjid Jamek - Two women in red and pink respectively have been nabbed by the police and found several strips of red cloth on them. One of them read a newspaper as she was lead away by a female cop. [See video]

Another man who was carrying a green T-shirt with Jawi script printed on it has been arrested.
The Masjid Jamek mosque, which protestors used as a shelter during the 2007 Bersih rally has been locked up.

10.43am: Sogo - Another three men, carrying backpacks, are picked up from around the area.
One, a heavily built man with a long goatee, appears to be wearing a Bernama press tag.

Approached later, the Bernama reporter said he was let off once the police were satisfied with his explanation. He said he was questioned because he was holding a walkie-talkie.
The other two however was brought up a truck.

NONE10.45am: Kampung Baru - Yet another group of people are being detained, including one male who was in possession of a Bersih T-shirt. He was not placed with the other detainees and brought elsewhere for questioning.

10.55am: Stadium Merdeka - Police have closed off the Maharajalela and Hang Tuah monorail stations, which is the closest to the stadium.

10.56am: KTM railway station - About 100 police are manning the entrance leading to the national mosque.
Some Pakatan Rakyat supporters are being asked the reason for their presence there.

10.58am: Brickfields - PAS Gombak Youth chief Syarhan Humaizy is taken by several plainclothes police officers at a restaurant near YMCA in Brickfields. They and several other PAS supporters were picked by cops who were checking restaurants and questioning suspected protesters.
The rest of the Syarhan entourage escaped the dragnet and are moving towards Stadium Merdeka via Jalan Tun Sambanthan.

11am: A Bukit Aman source said that more than 100 people have been arrested this morning so far.

11.04am: Hang Tuah LRT station is now closed for "security reasons".

11.10am: KLCC - No evidence to claims that tear gas was used at protestors here. Weekend shoppers are seen going about their business as usual.

NONE11.12am: Sogo - Police trucks are filling up fast. Another three men are being processed after they were detained around Masjid India.
One of the men, from Alor Setar, says that police searched his bag and found yellow T-shirt.
"Put in my photo, splash it a bit (Bubuh gambar saya, biar besar sikit)," he grins before being told told to get into the truck.

11.25am: According to sources, Pakatan Rakyat leaders are moving into the city centre.

11.30am: Royal Malaysian Police Facebook page says that as of 11am, 236 people have been arrested - 228 men, eight women.

NONE11.35am: Tension rising at the old KTM station. The police are trying to disperse the crowd gathered on platforms inside the building.

The crowd is chanting "God is great" and remain in defiance of the police. At least six people have been arrested within the vicinity since morning.

11.34am: Masjid Jamek - A young man who has a yellow Bersih 2.0 T-shirt in his bag arrested in front of the McDonald restaurant.
From 10.50am until now, the total number of those arrested in this area is close to 40. They are carted away in a police truck as well as a police van. Anticipating more arrests, the police call in another truck to serve as their temporary remand room.
The heavy-guarded Masjid Jamek LRT station is still operating and commuters are still streaming into the area.
NONEThe number of journalists, both local and foreign, have risen to 50.

11.44am: The biggest crowd is in both the vicinity of Masjid Jamek and Masjid Negara. However, the gates into Masjid Jamek are locked while police are not allowing anyone near Masjid Negara, confining most of the people in the old KTM station.

11.47am: Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin sends a tweet saying that his Patriot group will be gathering in Jalan Bukit Bintang at 1pm. “Pahang Umno Youth chief Abu Jimi has been arrested by the police in Putra bus station.”

11.50am: Azmin Ali sends tweet - Saya sudah berjaya tiba di 'forbidden city of KL' (I have successfully entered the forbidden city of KL).
PKR deputy president Azmin is one of the 91 individuals banned by a court order from the protest area.

NONE11.45am: Sogo - A woman is seen pleading with the police to release her husband who was picked up as they were shopping at Haniffa Textile.

"The police asked me to take a taxi, but there are no taxis here," said the franctic woman as the police truck with her husband inside pulled away.

11.55am: Old KTM station - Many people are still loitering on the middle platform of the train station. Those asked to leave are seen exiting over a pedestrian bridge near the Syariah Court.
More than a dozen have been arrested in this area. The police are very rough in handling suspects. One is grabbed by the neck. The second police truck filled with those arrested leaves for the police station.
A team of Light Strike Force is lining up, preparing to move into the KTM station to disperse the crowd.

11.58am: Petaling Street - About 50 people are gathered in smaller clusters along the market street, believed to be protestors. However, none clad in yellow.

12.01pm: Old KTM headquarters - A public service announcement said that Komuter trains are facing delays because the authorities are conducting checks on passengers.

12.10pm: Masjid Jamek - MPSJ councillor Michael Tamil and Mohd Hafifudin, who is chairperson of Bumiputera Hawkers Association Masjid India, are monitoring the Masjid India market area.
"I'm here to see how much are the losses of the hawkers because of people not coming in," said an annoyed Hafifudin.
"If the hawkers suffer due to road closure, who should they claim their losses from? They should claim from the government," he told Malaysiakini when met at Bazaar Jalan Melayu.
Almost all the stalls and shops here are closed.
The same announcement also urged those without tickets to leave the area.
12.15pm: PAS headquarters on Jalan Raja Laut appears very quiet with only about 50 people outside, including former PAS information chief Misbahul Munir. Four police patrol cars are parked 50 meters away, with about 15 police officers. A group of Special Branch men are mingling with the crowd, some watching from afar.
12.17pm: According to the police Facebook page, they are dispelling Bersih 2.0's Twitter claims that there was a clash between protestors and the police at KLCC and that tear gas was used.

NONE12:20pm: IPK KL -A total of 338 people have been arrested - 321 males and 17 females.
They were picked up around Dataran DBKL, Istana Negara, Pasar Seni, Kampung Baru and Masjid Jamek.

12.20pm: Pudu Plaza - At Jalan Landak, Pudu, some 200 people have started to gather, preparing for the rally.
Police are scattered about, searching the protestors' bags and belongings without any further action.
NONEA small quarrel breaks out between protestors and Pudu security personnel when they try to chase them away.
Some foodstalls and restaurants are still operating, and a durian stall is seen offering protestors a taste of their wares.
DAP leaders who have shown up include Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun, PJ Utara MP Tony Pua, Serdang MP Teo Nie Ching, Bukit Bendera MP Liew Ching Tong, Segambut MP Lim Lip Éng, Beruas MP Ngeh Koo Ham, Selangor exco Ean Yong Hian Wah, Lukut Adun Ean Yong Tin Sin, Pasir Pinjir Adun Thomas Soo, Bahau Adun Teo Kok Seong.

12.21pm: Former KTM headquarters - Police have locked up toilets in the building.

12.23pm: Masjid Jamek - Although hardly any shop is open, many people are loitering around the back lanes of Little India, waiting for the time to act.
The police continue to comb the back lanes, checking the bags foe signs of potential protesters.
"They asked us to open our bag, suspecting there is bomb inside," said an angry middle-aged Malay woman from Klang after hers was inspected by four uniformed police officers.
NONE"Why can't we just sit here? This is our human right," said another woman who is also from Klang.

12.30pm: KL Sentral - Pakatan Rakyat leaders Anwar Ibrahim, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Anthony Loke and Saifuddin Nasution are at Hilton Hotel, located in the building. They are expected to hold a press conference soon. All of them are on the list of 91 individuals forbidden to enter Kuala Lumpur.

12.31pm: KL Sentral - PAS vice-presidents Mahfuz Omar and Salahuddin Ayub have been detained.

12.32pm: Masjid Jamek - MPSJ councillor Michael Tamil and Mohd Hafifudin, who is chairperson of Bumiputera Hawkers Association Masjid India, are monitoring the Masjid India market area.
"I'm here to see how much are the losses of the hawkers because of people not coming in," said an annoyed Hafifudin.
"If the hawkers suffer due to road closure, who should they claim their losses from? They should claim from the government," he told Malaysiakini when met at Bazaar Jalan Melayu.
Almost all the stalls and shops here are closed.

NONE12.34pm: About 1,000 people are moving from the old KTM station towards Dataran Merdeka. They are warned by the Federal Reserve Unit to disperse.

12.40pm: Official police update: As of 12 noon, 441 people have been arrested - 421 males and 20 females.

12.42pm: Old KTM station - Suhakam commissioner James Nayagam said they are concerned about the mass arrests.
"Police said they will be detained at Pulapol (Police Training Centre). We are monitoring the arrests and express our concern," he said.
Nayagam, however, does not want to comment whether the police were rough in their actions against the suspects.

12.45pm: Dataran Merdeka - Police have fired tear gas at a group of protestors who are marching towards the area. The tear gas cannisters landed near the Bar Council building.

This group is believed to have marched from the former KTM headquarters nearby. The crowd is estimated at 1,000 people.

NONE12.50pm: About 3,000 to 4,000 people are marching from Petaling Street in downtown Kuala Lumpur to Stadium Negara.
They are chanting "Bersih, Bersih, Pilihanraya" and "Hidup, Hidup, Rakyat".
Six middle-aged protestors began a rendition of Negaraku, which immediately received a strong response from the crowd, which sing along.
Dr Wong Fort Pin, one of the six singers, said they are celebrating peace.
"We are walking for a better Malaysia," he said.

12.51pm:
Hilton Hotel - PKR leaders Nurul Izzah Anwar, Syed Husin Ali, Lateefah Koya arrive in Anwar Ibrahim's hotel room. Local and foreign media are at the lobby.

NONE12.55pm: Pudu Plaza - DAP leader Teresa Kok is defying her ban and leading protesters to start the march towards Merdeka Stadium.
The crowd is shouting, "Bersih, bersih," "Hidup rakyat" , "Rakyat sudah bangun," and "Daulat Tuanku."
The have at press time reached Shaw Parade, with no sign yet of any police interference.

The crowd soon swells to two thousand, with the DAP-led march cleverly sticking to tourist spots at Sungei Wang and Low Yat Plaza past Federal Hotel to foil police action.
They are also sending motorcycle recces to keep them informed of police presence ahead.

NONE1pm: Masjid Jamek - The crowd here has grown to about 1,000 people and the are beginning to march.

Earlier, a student was hit by a tear gas cannister. He refused to have his photograph taken due to his status.

1pm: Pudu-Bukit Bintang - At Jln Puduraya, the DAP-led march of up to 2,000 people reach the city centre, converging with the PKR-led team. The crowd cheers in delight, and chant, "Bersih" and other slogans.
The now gather at the Jln Tun Perak and Jln Pudu junction.

1.10pm: Masjid Negara - The mosque is mostly empty. Some are complaining that the toilets are locked.

1.14pm: A fake Twitter account @bersihrally have appeared, apparently created only at 9.42 this morning.
Claiming to provide "live coverage of the Bersih 2.0 rally, with multiple small groups of volunteers in the field reporting" it has since provided false accounts of the goings-on at the current Bersih 2.0 rally.
Among some of the allegations are looting in Pasar Seni, clashes with the police at KLCC as well as shots being fired in Bangsar.
After being 'outed' by other Twitter users, @bersihrally finally posted a message: "Took you guys long enough to figure it out. I've done my job. Thanks for playing."

1.15pm: Official police figures - 514 arrested. 478 males, 36 females.

1.20pm: Masjid Jamek - There is a standoff here. The growing NONEcrowd continues chanting while the police are awaiting reinforcements.

1.21am: Top Bersih leaders Ambiga Sreenevasan, Haris Ibrahim, Wong Chin Huat and A Samad Said are in Hilton Hotel. They are with politicians William Leong, Kamaruddin Jaafar, Zaid Kamaruddin, Syed Azman Syed Nawawi and Tian Chua. They join Anwar Ibrahim who is in the hotel.

It is confirmed PKR deputy president Azmin Ali has been arrested and was brought to Pulapol (Police Training Centre). Earlier, PAS vice-presidents Mahfuz Omar and Salahuddin Ayub were also arrested.

NONE1.22pm: Petaling Street - The group of a few thousand which is marching to Stadium Negara turn back to Jalan Tan Cheng Lock after encountering a roadblock.
A large group of Sarawakians are chanting 'Hidup Sarawak', receiving applause from the rest.

1.30pm: Malaysia Hotel - About 500 Umno Youth members have gathered at Jalan Bukit Bintang. They are all wearing red T-shirts with the word 'Patriot'. These T-shirts are also being given out to the public, including tourist.

NONEThe Umno Youth rally is aided with a pickup truck. Speakers would give speeches from the back of the truck and throw down T-shirts.

Among those present are Umno Youth leaders Arman Azhar, Reezal Merican Naina Merican, Zaki Zahid but there is no sign of the movement's leader Khairy Jamaluddin. His officers insist he will show up later.

The group is currently stationary and chanting "Hancur Bersih" (destroy Bersih) and "Who are we? Patriot!". They narrowly miss a Bersih 2.0 procession by about 10 minutes.

1.30pm: Pudu-Bukit Bintang - The authorities fire tear gas at Jln Tun Perak, forcing the crowd to retreat once, then the angry crowd shouts, "Masuk" (go in) and starts moving toward Jln Tun Perak .

1.33pm: Jalan Tun Perak - PAS leader Dr Hatta Ramli with a loudspeaker tells the crowd of at least 4,000 that party vice-president Mahfuz Omar and about 300 others have been arrested.
"The rakyat's struggle requires sacrifices... Those under 40 here have never seen real democracy in this country," he said.
NONEThe crowd reply with "Allahuakbar".
There are traffic marshals from Bersih also directing the crowd to make way for vehicles passing through.

1.35pm: Press statement by IPK KL.
Thus far, 540 people have been arrested (479 male, 58 women, three juvenile) have been arrested for further investigation.
Among the arrested, 11 were wearing yellow Bersih T-shirt and one was wearing a red Patriot T-shirt.
Meanwhile, three individuals believed to be leaders or organisers of the rally were also arrested. They are PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu, and party veeps Salahuddin Ayub, Mahfuz Omar.

1.36pm: KL Hilton - Bersih leaders hold a press conference and say they will march to Stadium Merdeka and will not give in to intimidation.
National laureate A Samad Said is also there.

NONES Ambiga says, “the cause of Bersih has been achieved, even before we have taken the first step.”
She said the authorities use of force was useless against the people's will. “No matter what right will always prevail.”
Slamming the mass arrests, Ambiga said their original goals of rallying for electoral reform has grown into something bigger as it has stirred emotions amongst “right thinking rakyat”.
“First, it has stirred a sense of outrage against the exhibition of raw power by our government, that seems to be living in a time warp.
“Secondly, it has stirred in us (the desire) to bring back a sense of balance and decency into our government,” she said.
Thirdly, she said the rakyat are beginning to feel empowered to make change, despite police “intimidation”.
“You cannot quell the voices,” she said.

NONE1.38pm: LRT Masjid Jamek - A police officer with loudhailer announced: “Perhimpunan hari in tak ada kebenaran jadi diminta semua bersurai serta merta atau kami suraikan dengan kekerasan.”
The officer also gave three minutes for the crowd to disperse.
This was met with “takbir” and jeers from the crowd, numbering about more than 500 people.

1.40pm: Menara Maybank - Water cannons unleashed on more than 1,000 protestors.

1.43pm: Masjid Jamek - A group of about 10 general duty police officers with gas masks chased after the protesters who ran helter skelter into Masjid India area.[Watch video - 17 sec]

1.44pm: Menara Maybank - Water cannon truck fires at the crowd a second time, this time with chemical laced irritants mixed with blue dye.
NONEInstead of dispersing, the crowd charged forward. Some were seen hitting the water cannon truck with their bare fist.
This was met with another round of tear gas. The tear gas managed to disperse the crowd slowly.
1.52pm: Masjid Jamek - There are at least four police trucks stationed at Masjid Jamek LRT station.
Crowd has been dispersed by the police tear gas for now, but it is expected they will be regrouped later.

1.55pm: It begins raining in Kuala Lumpur.

NONE1.57pm: Malaysia Hotel - Khairy Jamaluddin appears at the Umno Youth rally and gives out a short speech. He said that Bersih 2.0 cannot be supported because it is infiltrated by opposition parties.

He then leads the crowd in a march towards Stadium Merdeka. They will likely bump into a section of the Bersih 2.0 crowd.

1.59pm: Puduraya - Police fired tear gas on an estimated 10,000-strong crowd, which converges in Puduraya, in front of Menara Maybank. Part of the crowd came in from Masjid Jamek while others are from Petaling Street

NONEPolice had to resort to using tear gas after the water cannon failed to stop their advance. People in the crowd appear to be recovering from the tear gas and are coming back together to continue with their march.

2pm: Hilton Hotel - It is still raining cats and dogs outside the hotel and the atmosphere inside is tense as Pakatan leaders prepare to march out into the streets.
Despite the tension, they seem energetic and vowed to carry with their march to Stadium Merdeka once they get past the police barricade already set up outside the hotel waiting for them to emerge.
The Pakatan leaders are surrounded by a gaggle of reporters as they slowly make their way out towards the confrontation with authorities.

NONE2.10pm: Puduraya - The police are increasingly harsh towards protestors. Some are dragged on the road. One protestor was bleeding from the head.

Some police officers were seen punching and pushing protestors who were trying to flee.

In one incident, several protesters were forced to jump off a six-foot high ledge to evade capture.

2.15pm: Puduraya - At Jln Pudu, the Bersih group moves on towards the Maybank building just 500 metres in front of the Umno Youth group who have been stationary.
It appears that both sides are coordinating despite their differences, to ensure members refrain from clashing.
However some Umno Youth members persist in pressing forward, baying for blood.
NONEWith them are Umno Youth's Megat Firdouz, Reezal Merican and Arman Azha, all banned from the city.
The Bersih crowd disperses then regroups after FRU charge at them, arresting a few. They are unable to retreat to Petaling Street as the road in front of Kota Raya complex has been cordoned off.
They are forced to disperse into the back lanes behind Angkasa Hotel and Puduraya while the police pick on the dispersed groups, making arrests.
Those distributing flyers and flags to bystanders become easy targets for the cops and are swooped up.
In the ensuing melee, two TV Selangor reporters are mistakenly arrested despite wearing the press tags. However the duo, Abdul Muin Basuri and Norfarahidayu Baharudin are immediately released after other reporters identity them.

2.15pm: Bukit Bintang - Umno Youth's 'Patriot' procession has stalled momentarily.
According to sources within Umno Youth, the group is waiting for 'further clearance' when their desired route to Stadium Merdeka has been blocked by the police.
NONEThe group are also waiting for smaller pockets of Umno Youth supporters to march from Kampung Attap and PWTC.
Umno Youth leader Arman Azha is also seen trying to control the crowd from inching ahead.
It has started drizzling.

2.15pm: KL Sentral - Pakatan Rakyat and Bersih leaders are marching towards from the Hilton Hotel towards KL Sentral shouting "Bersih! Bersih!” but are stopped by the police.
People from inside the station are chanting with the leaders as well. PKR vice-president Tian Chua managed to find a weak spot in the police barricade and led the entire delegation through.
NONEThe top leaders are expected to march towards Stadium Merdeka.

"The outrageous arrest and mass detentions is most unwarranted especially after the wise advice from the Agong. Bersih has become more than a struggle for electoral reforms but is now for clean politics and governance," said Pakatan leader Anwar Ibrahim.

2.18pm: Pudu-Bukit Bintang - As the drizzle starts, the crowds raise their hands and cheer again, and retreat towards Bukit Bintang.
Penang deputy chief minister II P Ramasamy's political secretary Satees Muniandy reports, “I'm at Jln Pudu. Rain is God's blessing. The crowd is building up especially under the bridge. Thousands are not leaving despite water cannons, tear gas.”

NONE2.20pm: Puduraya - Police moved in to detain dozens of protesters, with officers going in groups of five to six to detain individual protesters.

Incidences of police brutality were seen, with officers allegedly punching and shoving detainees. They were also allegedly seen manhandling female detainees.

Some protesters jumped off a six-foot high ledge to evade capture in possibly one of the most dangerous situations of the day so far.

2.25pm: Brickfields - The Pakatan Rakyat and Bersih 2.0 crowd has managed to emerge from KL Sentral and have entered Jalan Tun Sambanthan where they are met by almost 1,000 supporters.
NONEBersih 2.0 chief Ambiga Sreenevasan, Anwar Ibrahim, Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Lim Kit Siang and other personalities are spotted among the crowd.
While proceeding towards the city centre, they were pelted with tear gas cannisters and chaos ensued. A number of top leaders have been arrested.

2.30pm: Human Rights Watch's Asia division deputy director Phil Robertson says, “This is a maelstrom of the Malaysian authorities' own making.
“The failure of the top levels of the Malaysian government to engage in good faith dialogue with citizens demanding basic electoral reforms is the heart of the matter,” he says in a statement, blasting continuing police action against the rallyers.

NONE2.30pm: Puduraya - The 10,000-strong crowd led by PAS leader Dr Hatta Ramli and PKR leader Badrul Hisham Shaharin has regrouped and move towards town centre.
However, the police fire yet another round of tear gas to disperse the crowd.'

2.35pm: Bukit Bintang - The Umno Youth group have stopped in front of Royale Bintang Hotel where they are walking towards another Bersih group at the Jalan Pudu-Bukit Bintang intersection.

2.35pm: Puduraya - Police fire rounds of tear gas into the crowd in quick succession, front of Angkasa Hotel and move in. The protestors hurl the canisters back into the police.
Some police officers, who were earlier seen punching protestors, are spotted with bruised eyes and coughing.
About six are arrested in front of Angkasa Hotel. The rain pounds down on the rally and protestors run helter skelter for shelter. Even the FRU get out of the rain.
The scattered protestors move towards the stadium in small groups of two or three following SMSes from Pakatan leaders asking them to gather there.
2.40pm: Bukit Bintang - Umno Youth's rally stand off with the FRU with neither budging.
Three are arrested after a scuffle ensues as protestors try to break past the FRU and tear gas is fired.
2.40pm: Puduraya - The crowd here is breaking up into smaller groups. They are believe to be taking separate routes towards Stadium Merdeka.

NONE2.41pm: PDRM Facebook: As of 2pm, 644 arrested - 597 males and 47 females.

2.43pm: Puduraya - In a lighthearted moment at Jln Hang Jebat, members of the procession to the stadium stops to buy ice cream from a hawker, who is doing brisk business.
They are mostly from the 10,000-strong crowd in front of Puduraya earlier.

2.43pm: KL Sentral - Pandemonium breaks out at KL Sentral as police fire tear gas in a closed environment as Bersih 2.0 and opposition leaders attempted to exit the station via Brickfields.

The tear gas forced protesters back into the station, which has been locked down. Journalists outside KL Sentral were barred from entering the station, making it difficult to verify the status of the situation.

It was however confirmed that a group of Pakatan leaders and individuals were arrested in the chaos, including Batu MP Tian Chua, Kuala Selangor MP Dzukefly Ahmad, artist Wong Hoy Cheong, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang's son and three other supporters.

patah kaki2.45pm: Puduraya - The police curiously arrest about 10 individuals out of a large group who have dispersed into Tung Shin hospital.
Meanwhile a man (right) who appears to have fractured his leg during the earlier melee is being attended by volunteer doctors.
The man was lying unattended on the road with his wrists bound by police, before the medical volunteers noticed him.
"The police held me, grabbed my head, bound my wrists and kicked me. There were several of them," said the man, visibly in pain.

NONE2.45pm: KL Sentral - Anwar Ibrahim tweets that he has suffered a minor injury and that his daughter Nurul Hana has been arrested during the melee.

Bersih 2.0 chief Ambiga Sreenevasan confirms that she has been arrested, so has PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang.

2.48pm: Puduraya - The crowd disperses into Tung Shing Hospital and a nearby Chinese school. Police are firing tear gas into the hospital in attempts to disperse the protestors.

NONEThere is brief respite as Subang MP R Sivarasa tries to negotiate with the police to allow protestors to move back to Masjid Negara.

2.50pm: KL Sentral - PKR vice-president N Surendran told MalaysiakiniAnwar is bleeding from the head and injured in one of his knees.

2.52pm: Puduraya - At Jln Hang Jebat near Stadium Merdeka, 3,000 Bersih supporters are gathered here attempting to move over to Stadium Merdeka nearby.
They meet a blockade with barbed wire. The crowd, growing by the minute, groups i front of the cops and chant at them.
Led by PAS election director Hatta Ramli and PKR Johor chief Chua Jui Meng, the crowd calls for the police to remove the barricades to no avail.
The two leaders give a short speech each telling the crowd they have accomplished their mission in arriving at the stadium, despite being unable to enter.
They thank the police and tell the crowd to return to Central Market.

2.55pm: Bukit Bintang - There's a standstill between the Umno Youth's Patriot rally and the FRU with neither side budging.
About three arrests were made when Umno Youth tried to break through the FRU line, breaking out into a scuffle before a tear gas canister was fired.
NONE2.57pm: Bukit Bintang - Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has been arrested when he was found to be resting and clearing his eyes from the tear gas fired, at a shack just 100m from the FRU line.
Water cannons and tear gas have also been fired at the remaining Umno Youth supporters, pushing them back 50m from where they originally were.
The group has thinned out to about 200 people.

He wrote on Twitter latter that he is being held at the Police Training Academy at Jalan Padang Tembak.

He said that wrote that one of his exco members was injured by a tear gas cannister.

"Have been taken Pulapol. FRU tear gas straight at them. Exco Zaki Zahid hurt," he wrote.

3.10pm: PDRM Facebook - The total number of people arrested as of 2.30pm has reached 672.

NONE3.15pm: Puduraya - Police have agreed to give safe passage to the thousands of protesters assembled at Pudu up till Jalan Sultan on condition that they only use half of the road and march peacefully.

The accord was met after Pakatan parliamentarians R Sivarasa and Ngeh Khoo Ham negotiated with the police, who also decided to allow the crowd to chant as they march.
3.20pm: Puduraya - The crowd has begun to march from Pudu towards Jalan Sultan, thanking the police for allowing them safe passage. The 2,000-strong crowd also began singing Negaraku as they march.

3.22pm:
Bukit Bintang - The 300 Umno Youth supporters at Jalan Bukit Bintang in front of Federal Hotel begin to disperse after negotiation with the police.
NONEClaiming moral victory despite only being able to proceed 200m along Jalan Bukit Bintang - still far from their Stadium Merdeka destination - Umno Youth exco Megat Omardin said that their message have been conveyed.
"We have come and we fulfilled our purpose," he told the crowd before another individual led a prayer.
Later, Umno Youth Petaling Jaya Utara chief Arman Azha told Malaysiakini that exco Lokman Noor Adam as well as 20 of their members have been arrested.
Movement head Khairy Jamaluddin, who was also arrested, later tweeted that he has been taken to Pulapol while exco Ahmad Zaki Zahid is injured.
"Have been taken to Pulapol. FRU tear gas straight at us. Exco @zakizahid hurt," he wrote.

NONE3.37pm: Pasar Seni - The triumphant group from Stadium Merdeka marched down Jalan Sultan towards Central Market, but they were attacked by tear gas by police near the Pasar Seni LRT Station.
This has forced then to retreat down Jalan Sultan.

3.38pm: Pudu - The 2,000-strong crowd at Pudu have now been denied safe passage to Jalan Sultan, and riot police have fired both water cannons and tear gas on the protesters assembled in front of the Tung Shin hospital. The crowd is now sandwiched between two FRU blockades.
NONEThe police started spraying the crowd after negotiations broke down between police and Pakatan MPs R Sivarasa and Ngeh Khoo Ham, following confusion over what the crowd is required to do.
It was learnt that the crowd were told to only use one side of the road and march peacefully, while it was understood that the police had wanted them to disperse into smaller groups before they would be allowed to march.
It is believed that Sivarasa has been detained, though it is unknown where he is being taken to.

3.39pm: Pasar Seni - The police fired more than 10 volleys of tear gas towards the crowd which is led by Bersih leader Wong Chin Huat without any warning as he was trying to deliver a speech before dispersing.
NONE
The tear gas was fired while the crowd was singing the national anthem. Most of the people are now seeking shelter under the Pasar Seni LRT station as Wong again lead them in singing Negaraku.
3.40pm: Titiwangsa Lake Gardens - About 20 Perkasa members are seen at a restaurant in Titiwangsa Lake Gardens, following the goings-on of the Bersih 2.0 rally through the television. However the group's president Ibrahim Ali and his deputy was nowhere to be seen.
Ten police officers were seen keeping order at the main door of the recreation park.
Meanwhile, a sad fate befell a bride and groom on their wedding day today as their wedding convoy were not allowed through police cordons, forcing them to walk to the site of the wedding celebrations two kilometres away.

NONE3.49pm: Pudu - The group of Bersih 2.0 supporters caught in a pincer between two police cordons in Tung Shin Hospital have now dispersed after police rushed in and begin to arrest dozens.
Most have fled using the back roads and alleys in small groups to make their escape while a hardcore few holed up in the upper parking lot of the hospital. The police subsequently fired tear gas canister at them and the last remaining holdouts were either arrested or left voluntarily.

At least 50 were arrested as police broke up the Tung Shing hospital crowd.

3.50pm: Istana Negara - A small group of Bersih 2.0 steering committee members are marching towards the palace from Midah Hotel. They are awaiting clearance from the palace to submit Bersih 2.0's petition.
3.55pm: Pasar Seni - Bersih leader Wong Chin Huat, after reading out the eight demands of Bersih 2.0, call on the crowd to disperse.
The crowd begins to disperse peacefully but many of them still chanting 'Reformasi' and 'Bersih' under the Pasar Seni LRT station.
The police responded by firing another round of tear gas into the crowd.

3.50pm: KL Hilton - In an impromptu press conference, PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar, N Surendran and PAS deputy secretary general Syed Azman condemn the police's brutality that they allege has caused injury to several Pakatan leaders.
They say besides PKR de facto chief Anwar Ibrahim, who has been sent to Pantai Hospital, PAS Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad and Bersih 2.0 leaders Maria Chin Abdullah and national laureate A Samad Said have also sustained injuries.

NONE4pm: Istana Negara - The Bersih 2.0 delegation of about 20 people led by national laureate A Samad Said were stopped from marching to the palace gates by the police about 200m away.

Negotiations with the police failed and the group agreed to disperse. However, Samad said he needed to rest and the group left him alone with the police before leaving the area.

4.01pm: PDRM Facebook - Among the top leaders arrested are:
Mahfuz Omar - KL Sentral
Salahuddin Ayub - KL Sentral
Mohamad Sabu - Jalan Mahameru
Fauziah Salleh - KL Sentral
Tian Chua - KL Sentral
S Ambiga - KL Sentral
Hadi Awang - KL Sentral
Azeez Rahim - Jalan Bukit Bintang

4.10pm: Light Rail Train (LRT) stations still closed, according to RapidKL - Pasar Seni, KL Sentral, Masjid Jamek and Dang Wangi.

4.21pm: Bersih committee to call press conference at 4.45pm at Midah Hotel.

4.40pm: Pudu - Suhakam commissioner Muhammad Sha'ani B Abdullah condemns the authorities for their harsh handling of the protesters.
The police force has not only disrespect the people's rights of assembly but also compromise the safety and health of the public by firing tear gas into the Tung Shin hospital compound.
When asked how can the people respond to such violations, he said Malaysians should choose representatives who can protect their rights.

4.50pm: Fadiah Nadwa Fikri of Lawyers for Liberty says that the police have invoked section 28A(8) - denial of access to lawyers - at Pulapol (Police Training Centre), where she says 1,000 people are being detained.
According to her, this is a violation of Article 5 of constitution.

5.34pm: PDRM Facebook - As of 3.30pm, a total of 924 people have been arrested.

6.30pm: Police say 1,401 protesters were arrested during the day-long operation, including 13 children. The authorities estimate the crowd turn out between 5,000 to 6,000.

6.45pm: IPK KL - Ambiga Sreenevasan has been released from detention. KL CID chief Ku Chin Wa said that the police would decide whether to take action against her after investigations are concluded.

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