Cops warn anti-TPPA protesters to stay away from Dataran Merdeka
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KUALA LUMPUR: Police have warned participants of the Anti Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) rally on Saturday to stay away from Dataran Merdeka.
Dang Wangi OCPD Asst Comm Zainol Samah (pic) said that police would not hesitate to take stern action against those who broke the law and urged participants to follow the advice of police to gather at Padang Merbok.
"We urge participants of the rally not to gather at Dataran and only gather at Padang Merbok," he told reporters during a press conference on Friday.
"We have met with the organisers and during the second meeting, they have agreed to hold the rally at Padang Merbok if they were not given permission by DBKL (Kuala Lumpur City Hall) to hold it at Dataran Merdeka.," he said adding that DBKL had already given permission on Thursday to the organisers to hold the rally at Padang Merbok.
ACP Zainol also urged the organisers to ensure that the rally was peaceful.
"I cannot say whether (the rally) is legal or not. It is called a peaceful rally, so it must be peaceful. If it is not peaceful, then police will have to investigate," he said when asked whether the rally was illegal
"For example, if the participants bring children, some participants cause provocation or march on the streets. That is wrong. If there are such incidents, police have to investigate. It depends on whether the participants break the law or not," he said.
He added that Jalan Raja would also be closed starting 12am Saturday.
Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Amin Nordin Abd Aziz ealier said the organiser’s application to hold the rally at Dataran Merdeka and Jalan Raja was rejected and they have been given Padang Merbok as an alternative venue.
Meanwhile, ACP Zainol said that police have also arrested six men at about 4am on Friday when they were allegedly vandalizing public property by spraying the Anarchy symbol.
ACP Zainol said that the suspects, aged between their 30s and 50s, were believed to be involved with the "Anarchist" group that set off flares and ball-shaped firecrackers during the Anti-GST rally on May 1 last year.
