Over the years, Parliamentary Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang has had occasion to decry incidents that have brought shame on Parliament.

Today, he directed his ire at the police, whose actions this morning contributed to "the most disgraceful and shameful episode in the (history of) Parliament".

At a press conference in the Parliament lobby, Lim drew attention to the numerous roadblocks put up by the police along all roads leading to House where the Dewan Rakyat is still in session. 

This was to deter leaders and supporters of the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) from submitting a protest memorandum over the Constitutional Amendment Bill, which sought to extend the Election Commission chief’s tenure up to the new age-limit of 66.

Said Lim: “We want the police to look after the safety of Parliament House, not to block access to it by the people or NGOs. Nobody is afraid that lives are at stake today, as it appears from the sieged scenario that we see.”

There was a heavy police presence with three check-points on the approach road to Parliament but this did not extend into the grounds. Rolls of barbed wire were unfurled along both sides of the road.

Saying that access to Parliament was blocked for the first time in its history, Lim said this has gone against the privileges and sovereignty of the institution, as well as undermined the responsibility accorded to it.

He was of the view that there would not have been any untoward incident if the Bersih delegation had been allowed into the building.

"They would have come peacefully. Then police blocks have instead of created a big ooh aah as if our country is under threat. It is completely, artificially manufactured and not good for our country's reputation," he said.

"It is also the first time a court order has been obtained to prevent the public from going to Parliament…[such action is] uncalled for and unwarranted."

‘Initiate contempt proceedings’

DAP MP for Ipoh Barat M Kulasegaran said the move by the police to obtain the court order to restrain public access to Parliament was a "very contemptuous act".

He urged Speaker Ramli Ngah Talib to make an application to set aside the court order and to initiate contempt proceeding against the police. 

"Whenever there is a sitting, the Inspector-General of Police [is obliged by a motion] to keep open all routes to Parliament. The question now is, did the police produce this motion when they obtained the court order? I think they suppressed it," he said.

“There must be free access. People must be allowed to come (to Parliament). There must be an end to the mentality of fear [among the authorities].”

DAP MP for Bukit Mertajam Chong Eng said that Malaysia, which aims to become a developed country by 2020, must have a police force with a developed mentality.

She said the police must be able to handle peaceful demonstrations without a show of force and urged Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is internal security minister to direct the police to take up this challenge. 

"We're not at the stage where we need to choose between public safety or public freedom," she said, referring to Abdullah's statement that given a choice between public safety and public freedom, he would choose public safety.

"We can have both. Public safety and public freedom can go together," she added.

Bersih comprises representatives from 67 NGOs and five opposition parties, including DAP.