• 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.
