Hindraf Rally

Thousands of Indian Malaysians came out on Sunday 25 November 2007 for a rally organised by Hindraf (Hindu Rights Action Force). The original purpose of the rally was to hand over a petition to the British High Commission for Queen Elizabeth II to protest against Britain's colonial policies in the past. Many people are sceptical of the demands contained in the petition. However, the large number of people turning up for this rally indicates not so much the support for the petition but more the simmering dissatisfaction and anger of the Indians towards the policies of the current government.

Some of the participants in the rally have gathered since the early morning in different parts of Kuala Lumpur despite the warnings issued by the police that protesters could be arrested on sight. The police had obtained an unprecedented court order on Friday to ban the gathering. Initial estimates of the number of people gathering in different areas of the city was 10,000 - the original target of the organisers - but it appears that there could be as many as 30,000 protesters who turned up for the rally.

The response of the police was heavy-handed using tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd. Numerous protesters were arrested. A video of the news report by Al Jazeera can be viewed here:

Hindraf Rally Report - Al Jazeera

For more details on the rally, please read a first-hand report by Nat Tan and Malaysiankini's report 30,000 Hindraf protesters rally in KLCC.