The promise of political violence

 

As if these carrots were not good enough, the BN, especially the Umno leadership, is also promising a stick to influence voters.

Jacqueline Ann Surin, The Nut Graph 

THE Barisan Nasional (BN) ruling coalition led by Datuk Seri Najib Razak has been making all kinds of election promises. From more funding for Chinese vernacular schools to more Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia handouts and the assurance of economic stability, Najib and his administration have gone into overdrive to influence Malaysian voters.

As if these carrots were not good enough, the BN, especially the Umno leadership, is also promising a stick to influence voters. What is this stick? It’s the promise of political violence. And while this promise has not been as overt as the cash handouts and other goodies, the threat of electoral violence grows more apparent by the day.

How can we tell that political violence is on BN’s election menu? And what needs to happen for Malaysians to be free of such threats?

Attack and assault

Over the past three months since the start of 2013, there have been repeated incidents of violence at political events. Bersih 2.0 has described these incidents as “an unprecedented escalation in political violence”, indicating that “violence is increasingly becoming a weapon of first resort”.

Throughout the months of February and March, opposition politicians including Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Nurul Izzah Anwar, Tian Chua and M Manogaran have all been assaulted. Other groups critical of the BN, such as the Felda Settlers’ Children Association and Gerakan Mahasiswa PRU13, have also been targeted and attacked. The groups that have used assault to silence and scare those with different political views have hurled rocks, bricks, wood, firecrackers, water bottles, a helmet and eggs to cause harm. They have damaged property and caused injury with near impunity, it would seem.

Read more at: http://www.thenutgraph.com/the-promise-of-political-violence/