Gems of Snide comments on the Black 505 rally and attempts to subvert by BN via MPKL

To SUBVERT : 
Synonyms ; upset, disrupt, undermine, overturn, sabotage.

From you tube: 

Bryan Wong 

playing right into the PR's hands,free publicity that gets people indignant, now probably few thousand more will resolve to attend just because they feel challenged..and do not want to feel suppresed.of voicing their resentment. 

kL mayor, another target for public bashing, hope he has prepared himself, and not have dug his own grave. the sting of peoples' disapproval can be very hard to bear.

grimweird

Excellent. With people like this on their side, BN won't need any enemies. 1.39-1.49 LOSER.

Cikmat B

That's a good proof of 'public interests'. And the aim of authorities are to make the rakyat lose interest in the fraud during GE13 election

From malaysiakini:

Pahatian: Now which is which? Did the OCM switched its venue to Padang Merbok or DBKL switched OCM's venue to Padang Merbok?

Either way, it was done purposely to sabotage Pakatan's Black 505 rally. This is the order of the day of the BN government.

FellowMalaysian: It is clear DBKL has no wish of allowing the Black 505 rally at Padang Merbok when they had to resort to cajoling OCM to subvert Pakatan's intent.

It is unbecoming for DBKL as a city council to openly and brazenly declare their political inclinations in such a blatant and offensive manner.

I believe DBKL's latest actions will cause this Saturday's indignant crowd to swell beyond unprecedented figures.

Quigonbond: Those who are planning to attend the OCM Olympic Day Fun Run, the right thing for you to do is to skip it and join the 505 rally. Electoral fraud is a far more important issue than a fun run.
And I can assure you after the event, when you check the news and see the shock on PM's face, you will know that you have contributed meaningfully to Malaysia's democracy.

AnakJohor1920: With the blatant ‘arm-twisting' of the OCM by DBKL, the majority of the rakyat are even angrier and more disgusted by the mayor who is trying all sort of tricks to deny the Black 505 rally at Padang Merbok.

OCM, being a apolitical sports body, should not change its venue at the last hour, thus giving the impression that its action was politically motivated. It is so pathetic on the part of OCM to ‘kow-tow' (bow) so quickly to DBKL mayor.

OCM, where is your integrity? Why can't you resist the change in venue and stick to your original venue, which is Dataran Merdeka?

McDonald's, being the key sponsor in this sporting event, will also be affected and its reputation severely tarnished. OCM and McDonald's may have to be prepared for an eventual boycott by Malaysians.

My favourite:   Ramachandran Muniandy: Let's all go as participants of the Olympic Day Run, then later change to black T-shirts.

When Mahatma Gandhi started the salt boycott in India, the British closed all the roads to stop the rallies. But the participants went ahead. Hundreds and thousands were arrested. When taken to court, all said that they were guilty.

The judge sentenced them to three months in prison or a fine of 20 rupees. They said they couldn't afford the fine but were willing to go jail. The prisons had no room for them and it would also be a costly affair.
All were eventually acquitted with a warning. That's what people do to fight for their rights!

MockingYou: Okay, we go to Dataran Merdeka then. It's even more symbolic as that was the site where blatant abuse of power was captured on video and shown to the whole world to see.

Bamboo: If sports organisation like the OCM is used as a political tool, this is the lowest that BN can go. What to do, a government which needs only 20 percent of the votes to win surely has lots of inferiority complexes and will do its utmost to stifle dissent.

Vgeorgemy: Pakatan must report to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over OCM's involvement in politicking in Malaysia.

Mahashitla: Umno-BN is using every effort to frustrate the Black 505 rallies and this one on June 22 is no exception. It is too afraid of its own 'dark shadows'.

Not only the KL mayor and the deputy federal police chief Bakri Zinin have become Umno-BN's stooges but our sporting body, OCM, has now been turned into a political pawn. Black 505 should proceed at Padang Merbok.

Anonymous #47435535: Malaysia boleh! Everything is politicised by those who fear real power - the people's power.

Mushiro: OCM and McDonald's have allowed themselves to be used by Umno to go head on against the rakyat.

It is best that OCM and McDonald's state their stand clearly. The fast-food chain should also pull out from its sponsorship of the event. The rally will go on - rain or shine, or whether there is police permit.

Not Convinced: McDonald's, we're not lovin' it!

Is KL a safe city to visit..What foreigners think!

Perception ??
  It  is damaging ..especially when tourist are considering a visit to KL  
  and come across web sites who have rated KL according to feedback .
   Incredibly , we are one notch above Johanessburg at no. 7 ,
   a city notorious for unchecked crime and shootings,kidnappings,
   a virtual  crime paradise .

We as Malaysians may or may not agree with this "perception" of our
   lovely city but , does it make a difference.? 

Especially what has been going on in the crime scene in the city  lately.?
   Made to feel unsafe and constantly looking over our shoulder, as we
  stroll around town. 
 Hoping no one is going to  snatch or mug us.

 It has happened to not only locals but foreign tourist as well..

Check out this listing of the top 10 dangerous cities of the world from a website..
and at no..

                        6. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Malaysia also takes pride in its spectacular landscapes,
 a culture that begs to be discovered and explored and…
 a history of violence that made way too many victims.

 Presently, the state’s capital is said to be one of the most dangerous cities in the world, 
as the crime rate increased with 70% in the last three years. 
It wasn’t a peace on Earth display before either, 
but now things seem to keep getting worse.

http://www.10awesome.com/10-dangerous-cities-in-the-world/

Just one among so many accounts of tourist being victims of crime in KL...

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/6/10/focus/4081622&sec=focus

Not only KL but Penang, a tourist haven as well,  has it's share of 
 notoriety also involving tourist as victims..

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2012/7/22/north/11709182&sec=north

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2013/1/12/north/12566381&sec=north

From the Star...

TOURISM officials have expressed concerns that the media is playing up stories
about snatch thefts and this could hurt the tourism industry.

Some officials fear that the local reports would be picked up by the foreign press
 and foreigners would be deterred from visiting Malaysia.
 Tourism officials feel snatch theft is not a serious problem.

( who are they kidding! just a cursory search online and we can find 
dozens of accounts involving tourist, 

These are occurrences that have been reported and  publicized,
 what about the unreported that probably happens daily  )

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2004/6/19/nation/8252050&sec=nation

All these (and more) serious crime cases happened within the last eight weeks. 
And  not even taking into account the crime cases since January or even last year. 
Usually we would only read about these cases in the newspaper or watch them
 being covered on television.

 Not only us living in the country are alarmed but those who aren't even Malaysians
 have the same sentiments about the dire state of affairs with crime rates in the nation.. 

Story below on violent crimes ..

http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2012/6/16/central/11483630

From The Malay Mail

Launch crackdown to curb snatch thefts

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 13, 2012 - 17:22

I HAVE been living here for less than three months and have already been a snatch theft victim.
 Five other women I know have also been victims within the same time span. 
The latest case occurred, last Friday evening.

These cowardly scum prey on expatriates or women tourists because they are seen as soft targets.
 Always on motorbikes, working alone or in pairs, they prey on defenceless women, snatching handbags or jewellery.

There should be a much higher police presence in the city centre and popular tourist areas in the evenings as these are the areas that these villainous vermin target.

The reputation of Malaysia as a tourist destination will suffer as details of these crimes are publicised abroad.

A crackdown on snatch thieves is required urgently.

A start would be to ban motorbikes from city centre tourist areas after sunset — 
at least this would deprive these rats of their means of escape.

There should also be police patrols through these areas on a constant basis in the evenings.

If this crime is allowed to continue without a crackdown, sooner or later there will be a serious injury or death — reported in the international media. Now that would not do Malaysia's reputation any good at all, would it?

GEORGE DIXON
KUALA LUMPUR

Megalomaniacs..

The megalomaniatic cleptocrat's have zero empathy for their own peoples .
We need to go back to our original cultures and rescue our values  and stop absolutely this manipulative attempts to control minds and our wellbeing . Those responsible for these are  people that are so sick because of the power they wield , it makes me sick, and I know because I know I am   being screwed over by them ! 
But  methinks ....

a Government over-facilitating the people in exchange for votes and voters using the "this is a democracy" card in exchange for disobeying the law and getting away with it.
 On the verge of bankrupting the nation running up  humongous  debts because of non-democratic means of governing acting in authoritarian ways -completely disregarding the people's will and the country's interests in order to facilitate themselves and calling the whole system a democracy.

   A dysfunctional democracy- SHAMOCRACY-  practiced in Malaysia.
 No matter where in the world you go, whatever the continent the place, the poor always seem to suffer at the hands of the rich. Whether through religion, politics, class, always pitting  people  against each other and the ones who really benefit are-"  the super rich and powerful".......when will this ever stop, i wonder?

Be aware of what is unfolding before our eyes and perversely disguised by politicians and media. There must be an  insurrection! This nightmare needs to be be stopped! The people must unite against the elitist tyranny who wants to easily take possession of what was earned for through the  efforts and sacrifice by the people!

  Ethics, integrity are just words, means nothing to politicians! Wake up and do what you can,
or it will be A bit like finding out you have STD, and then start wearing condoms. 
Too little too late. 

WTF does a "Guided Democracy" really mean? Just another veiled attempt at imposing dictatorial rule.

If that is how UMNO is to be run, then at the same token, it is what to expect as well from BN. 

A "Guided democracy" for the nation since they are running the show also.

‘Guided democracy’ is the Umno way, no leadership contest necessary – Ku Nan

JUNE 18, 2013

Umno secretary-general  Datuk Seri Tengku  Adnan Mansor stressed that the top two posts in Umno – president and deputy president – need not be contested in the upcoming party elections as the party follows the principle of a “guided democracy”. He said this after some party leaders and groups insisted on a leadership contest, despite the supreme council’s recent decision that there will be no contest for the top two posts.

"What we want to follow is the ‘guided democracy’. As such, there won’t be any contest for the post of president and deputy president. After all, we just had our general elections,” Tengku Adnan told reporters at his office in the Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur building today. – June 18, 2013.

Does Ku Nan realise the implications of what he is suggesting?

Now UMNO seems to be borrowing old school methods from Sukarno, are they so out of ideas.? Retrieving and recycling  useless junk  from a known dictator.

Democracy is a form of government in which all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Democracy allows eligible citizens to participate equally—either directly or through elected representatives—in the proposal, development, and creation of laws. It encompasses social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination.

How do you guide  a democracy? By forcibly telling (mental bullying)  the citizens what to think, who to select...That will be a Shamocracy!

- Guided democracy, also called managed democracy, is a term for a democratic government with increased autocracy. Governments are legitimated by elections that are free and fair but emptied of substantive meaning in their ability to change the State's policies, motives, and goals.

In other words, elections are controlled so that the people can exercise all their rights without significantly effecting any  changes in leadership or policies. While basic democratic principles may be applied,  there can be major deviations towards authoritarianism. 

 Under a Guided or managed democracy, the electorate is prevented from having a significant impact on policies adopted by the State's continuous use of propaganda techniques.

The term was first imposed for  Indonesia, but it is now also widely employed in Hungary ,and in Russia,and to an extent in Singapore, introduced into common practice by the Kremlin theorists, and  even the United States of America according to Princeton professor Sheldon Wolin and his theories regarding inverted totalitarianism. 

 Guided democracy was  the brainchild of President Sukarno of Indonesia ,putting in place a political system from 1957 until the New Order began in 1966. Sukarno felt that the Western-style democracy not suited for Indonesia's situation. Ironically inspired by Communism after visiting Mao.
Sukarno proposed a threefold blend of nasionalisme ('nationalism'), agama ('religion'), and komunisme ('communism') into a co-operative 'Nas-A-Kom' government, designed to appease the three main factions in Indonesian politics — the army, Islamic groups, and the communists. He proclaimed in February 1957, 'Guided Democracy', and proposed a cabinet representing all political parties of importance including the Communist Party of Indonesia.-

In other words, a guided democracy is just another veiled attempt at imposing  dictatorial  rule!!

It's raining MEN.in ASIA.!

      -

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -

ITS RAINING MEN!!! HALLELUYAH.
Girls will have fun over run by surplus MEN.
I

Source; Asia Sentinel 

Listen to this Muslim man !!

You must listen to this Muslim

People from every religions, and how many can learn from this guy !.

The gathering was to celebrate the work of a guy called Izzeldin Abuelaish, a doctor from the Middle East who has written a book. 

He was born to a Muslim family who had lived for generations in a farming place in Palestine.

But the family was dispossessed, their land taken over by a man called Ariel Sharon.

The family was sent to a refugee camp.

But they didn’t fight. They knew that someone had to break the cycle of hate, so they focused on the positive, working hard to get their children to school.

***

One of the kids, Izzeldin, worked really hard at school, and got himself all the way to university to become a doctor.

He was so talented in his field that he was offered a job in a hospital in Israel.

Despite this, he was tormented continuously by guards every time he had to cross the border from Gaza to Israel.

He decided to again break the cycle of hate, patiently enduring the humiliations, focusing on the opportunity to buy “luxuries” such as food and clothing to take back to Gaza for his children.

***

One day a tank rumbled down his street and fired missiles straight into his home.

They hit the girls’ bedroom.

Four young people died.

Izzeldin rushed into the room to find pieces of his children all over the room. One child in the room survived, but her eye was dangling on her cheek.

He called for help.

But ambulances were not allowed to approach, so he had to pick up the survivors and carry them across town.

***

“Now do you hate the Israelis?” his friends asked.

“No,” he replied. “Someone has to break the cycle of hate.”Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of his 

book...

This powerful firsthand account of grief, loss, and forgiveness is set against one of the longest running conflicts of modern times: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The author weaves his own coming-of-age against the history of two peoples in conflict. The message is, surprisingly, one of peace and calling individuals to consider the good in one another in place of broad, mostly negative stereotypes.

I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor's Journey on the Road to Peace and Human Dignity

Source: http://www.mrjam.org/2013/05/you-must-listen-to-this-muslim.html

Countdown to Black505 protest Rally.Will the fire be rekindled or just embers!

The Choice has reported before on the manner in which it seems as if PKR's intemperate rhetoric about electoral fraud and its seemingly endless rallies have unleashed a tiger in the form of NGOs and grassroots who took them seriously. We noted at the time that PAS and the DAP have long experience in managing their grassroots, and so have been able to accept the election results and move forward with the task of governance.

PKR, however, is and for as long as he lives will be the party of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and so lacks the institutional competence to understand how far matters may be pressed. Matters were clearly becoming shambolic when various Pakatan Rakyat-aligned NGOs began calling on the Opposition to boycott Parliament. As noted at the time, this demand was perfectly reasonable if you believed Pakatan's ridiculous notion that the election was stolen – if the elections were stolen, Parliament is illegitimate, and it is morally and legally wrong to pretend otherwise.

This forced PKR into a complicated series of promises and climb-downs that ultimately ended with PKR's political officers voting unanimously to be sworn into Parliament, a move that likely confused those of their supporters who thought Keadilan serious about allegations of fraud rather than simply working up outrage to compel Anwar into Putrajaya.

This near-miss has not caused Pakatan's leadership to contemplate whether it might be wiser to tamp down the rhetoric; or if it has, they fear the consequences of such a move too much to stop. Thus, yet another Black 505 rally is planned for Saturday, ostensibly for Padang Merbok and in apparent violation of the Peaceful Assembly Act.

Yet six weeks after GE13, some of Pakatan Rakyat's most fervent supporters at online portals and outside have begun to ask whether there is some point to all of these rallies and assemblies, with hard work yet to be done. Perhaps most pressing is the redelineation exercise set for later in the year – a simple majority can set new boundaries for various seats, but experts agree that only a two-thirds majority can create new seats, as doing so will require constitutional changes.

Pakatan Rakyat does not command a two-thirds majority. Only by working with Barisan Nasional and showing seriousness of purpose will Pakatan have any say in new seats – and yet doing these things will be a slap in the face to those supporters whom they have convinced that working with BN is not many steps removed from treason.

Yet failing to work on new seats will leave BN to simply set new boundaries on its own and forego the addition of any new seats – something that will undercut Pakatan's message that only BN gerrymandering allowed the coalition to win GE13.

Yet the rally set for Saturday shows no signs of disappearing, and so Pakatan must now somehow lower the fires it has set – or be burned, one way or another.

Source:The choice

Maybe Anwar should adopt this approach and do away with the Black 505 rallies.Jive the Hindustani/Tamil blues

Can you really blame them for feeling marginalized? All she ever wanted was to seek a better life for herself and her family.And she is more than qualified...BUT..!!

A very inauspicious "Runtuh" culture seems to be going on lately! Very worrying trend!

Let see now ..There was the collapsing crane during construction near Brickfields on the  monorail project- then the JPJ collapsing roof  at Wangsa Maju - cracks in the Kepong flyover (relieved that they have made rectification works to reinforce it) - CyberJaya bridge-Trengganu Gong Badak stadium (video below)
 More recently the Penang Bridge extension collapse(still reeling from that) and to make it worst the horrific collapse of the lightning arrestor structure  of the Penang UMNO building claiming lives.
 All these are high profile incidents covered by media..I have a sneaky suspicion that there are others as well which have been kept from public knowledge.  Question is, how many?
   How much more jinxed can BN get?

Aduh hai ,  Jambatan runtuh, stadium runtuh, highway runtuh, Steel berat bangunan umno  tumbang.. menyebab kematian,bumbung hospital runtuh -- Sueih betul.!!

    As  If -SOMEONE on TOP is NOT PLEASED!!


On a more serious and very worrying note. Will there be more collapsing structures to come? 
Can we feel safe driving the highways and by ways and crossing bridges?
 Should Malaysians be worried that they may  end up in a river or sea  driving across a bridge, or crashing into the traffic below  or God forbid-the flyover toppling onto our cars  crushing or flattening us like insects- as we drive on the elevated highways or flyovers or have tons of structure, toppling on top of them while cruising the streets or merely out for a stroll?

 Need i worry that the train might jump the tracks everytime i am riding on the LRT or KTM?
Will we be safe watching a football match at a stadium and not have to be concerned that the roof may come crashing down or the seats not able to hold the weight and collapsing the platform and end up hurting , maiming or horrors - killing innocents just out for a good time? 

 Now it has got me worried about going to PUDURAYA to catch a bus somewhere, may have to keep an eye on the roof.

 Are public amenities safe to use ? How childproof or even adult proof are they?
 I may be exaggerating a little or some may say paranoid yet  but it is food for thought!

Can we trust all the billion dollar structural projects by the goverment since completed and used by the public? 

Or will there be more fatalities because of the incorrigible practice of cutting corners purely motivated by the greed dimension, wilfully disregarding public safety and long term durability ,sacrificing quality control of the constructed projects, just for the sake of higher profits.

And now a collapsing roof at a hospital,of all places . Oh dear , what is this country coming to.!
          VIVA - La Compinches (cronies) capitalismo! 






Trengganu Gong Badak stadium roof collapse




See what ails goverment projects.

A living nation

A Living Nation

By Allan CF Goh

A nation cannot live
With its people truncated,
Like the dried fallen leaf,
Crushed and emasculated.

A people cannot thrive,
Under any tyranny,
Be it of racist strife,
Or undeserved agony.

A state cannot progress
If she rejects the truly best,
And goes on to transgress
Her people’s talented quest.

A country will degrade,
When swamped full of corruption.
It cannot maintain grade,
Based on discrimination.

When the country’s future
Rests on men of arrogance,
With talents not nurtured,
We face only ignorance.

There is only one choice:
To nurture virtues valiant,
Listen to progress’s voice,
And sideline all the villains

sourced from: http://may131969.wordpress.com/

Police brutality in Malaysia. Where does it start from ?

This is an observation, and not any condemnation in showing the videos. But cannot help to think what prompts our law enforcers to behave so brutishly during the Bersih  crackdowns.

And when we reflect that displayed behaviour onto all the  deaths in custody and police brutality cases. The videos offer a small insight on the way they react to stressful confrontational situations and how they may behave and how much courtesy they will be allowing when it comes to ordinary police work involving criminal suspects.

In situations shown in the videos ,they are behaving like  mob mentality. They seem to have a greenlight to go on a violent rampage  because they feel the power to do so. Bashing whatever comes their way, just because they can. Professionalism and discipline in carrying SOP completely out the window. Aren't they suppose to be trained better in the academy?

  Almost every video i viewed of the Bersih crackdowns seem to suggest a pattern of behaviour or misbehaviour of our boys in blue that does not vary very much when it comes to arresting protesters. To be fair, there are the responsible ones who displayed exemplary self control and professionalism in carrying out arrest , observing SOP as they should be doing. There were even some of these officers stopping their colleagues from the senseless brutality and shielding the victims.

 But even  a few incidents of the brutal behaviour is alarming enough to be very concerned about.It shows the mentality and lack of discipline among our PDRM crews.

  Viewing the videos ,it can be seen that  the person/persons being arrested has already been subdued, still you can witness the cops continuing their physical brutality on the person. Ganging up to cause pain, exhibiting a sadistic streak of pleasure being derived from the violence inflicted on another human. Ostensibly to teach the victims of their physical assault  a lesson but not realizing it is not their place to do so. Their job is to arrest and neutralize of which they clearly have done so..

The display of a complete lack in self restraint and professionalism is disturbing.  Power over another human being is very dangerous if abused.

Where does this type of  behaviour come from , because it shocks decent law abiding citizens.

These rank and file cops really need guidance and to be instilled in them ,more discipline in self restraint.  Something that basic training in the academy should inculcate in them is to respect people's rights  and above all the law that they  represent.
 Enforce the law  by all means and if it is deemed that the crowd is getting too disorderly , their  job is to  neutralize the situation by making arrests - that is understandable - but  not behave like gangsters beating up defenceless individuals, even after they have been subdued. They cannot just react to their basest of instinct for violence. That instinct needs to be trained out of them that they can do their jobs more effectively and earn the trust and respect of those they are pledged to serve and protect.

They still fear authority but lack  proper guidance and  training.
See how in the video below they dispersed when Tian Chua stepped in to stop the brutality.

  The police are not ordinary citizens.  They cannot behave like an unruly mob. Profesionalism is expected from them. So where does the training to have that mindset in professional and disciplined police work start from ?
 I would say during the police academy training and continue on after they have joined the force.




The videos above and  below shows very clearly , gang mentality, the arrested person was not resisting and still he was ganged up upon. You wonder what is in the minds of the police during this situation. Were they angry and lashing out at the most convenient scapegoat they could get their hands on. Surrendering to basest of instint to cause harm or caving in to the pressure of the situation.? What happened to cool heads under pressure that law enforcement are supposed to indoctrinate into their adherents ?

 But again , they are supposed to be disciplined pros. Above and in control at all times of the weaknesses of basic human emotions to just react in violent reprisal -  so that they can perform their duties efficiently. It is expected of them as guardians of the peace.


 But watching the video below , you cannot help but feel that , if minus  the uniforms , they are typically behaving exactly the same as expected from any unruly mob attacking a perceived enemy.
What do they teach and  indoctrinate in them during basic training?
Also more worrying , is this the existing culture that is still prevalent and acceptable within the force and is taken for granted that it is how things are done?
Notice also that those commiting the brutality are mostly youths, probably fresh out on the beat,their ages not far from the Mat Rempits, except they are on the other side. There are some videos of the plainclothes detctives as well, likely of the same ilk as those who do interrogation on suspects in custody. And they were even more aggresive  as if ingrained in their mindsets to be like that.
     People in any organisation  are shaped by the environment they work in and determines how they will approach their duties, if it is any reflection, these type of reaction mirrors very much on the institutional culture and mindsets in the PDRM.
 A thorough overhaul of culture and mindsets starting from the grassroots and basic training all the way to the existing top ranks is sorely needed to transform the force into a sleek,disciplined  and efficient organization trusted and appreciated by the people.

 It is not the methods of policing on trial in the court of public opinion but the attitudes of those in the whole institution!
                                         Bryanbb



Also see , police brutality of the good old days ,standards apply

              PDRM , Bullies or Defenders

Protest continues in Turkey despite concessions by goverment! Defiance vowed till demands are met.

• 
  T he protest has gone on for 2 weeks and still defiance is shown in spite of concessionary attempts by the goverment
   . When passions are aroused , it will take a lot of effort to put out the flames raging in the hearts of ordinary citizens. And all they want is to be heard and acknowledged in the beginning.
   Is there going to be a parallel situation in our nation? Lets hope not.!
  
  
  
  
   Protesters sit on the steps of Gezi Park of Taksim Square in Istanbul, Saturday, June 15, 2013. Protesters will press on with their sit-in at an Istanbul park.

• View Photo
  A protester sleeping on a bench …
• View Photo
  A bulldozer cleans the entrance …

ISTANBUL (AP) — Protesters will press on with their sit-in at anIstanbul park, an activist said Saturday, defying government appeals and a warning from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoganfor the two-week standoff that has fanned nationwide demonstrations to end.

The announcement from Taksim Solidarity, an umbrella group of protest movements in Gezi Park, is likely to return the spotlight on Erdogan's government — and how it will respond. He already has offered to defer to a court ruling on the legality of the government's contested park redevelopment plan, and floated the possibility of a referendum on it.

But concessions over the park seem to no longer be enough. A violent police crackdown on what began as an environmental protest over a redevelopment plan sparked a much broader expression of discontent about Erdogan's government and what many said was his increasingly authoritarian manner of governing.

Erdogan, who was elected with 50 percent of the vote for his third term in 2011, vehemently rejects the accusations. But the protests put some of the greatest political pressure on him in his 10-year tenure.

Earlier this week, Erdogan ordered the adjacent Taksim Square to be cleared of protesters who had also been staging a sit-in there. Police moved past improvised barricades on Tuesday, firing tear gasand rubber bullets and using water cannons to fend off small groups of demonstrators throwing stones, bottles and firebombs. Tear gas was also fired through the trees into the park, although the protesters were not removed.

Taksim Square itself returned to normal right after the end of the police operation early Wednesday. Traffic returned, the protest banners and flags were taken down, and cafes set up their chairs and tables outside again. At night, demonstrators still spill out from the park down the steps, while riot police keep watch from the edges.

Tayfun Kahraman — a Taksim Solidarity member who met with Erdogan in last-ditch talks that lasted until the pre-dawn hours Friday — said the protesters had agreed to continue their sit-in at Gezi Park after holding a series of discussions about their response to the pledges made by Erdogan.

"We shall remain in the park until all of our democratic rights are recognized," he told The Associated Press, insisting that four key demands laid out by protesters in the talks had not been met.

The group has demanded that apart from the park being left intact, anyone responsible for excessive police force must resign or be fired, all activists detained in the protests should be released, and the police use of tear gas and other non-lethal weapons be banned.

"As of today, with the dynamism and strength that comes from the struggle that has spread to the whole country, and even the world, we shall continue the resistance against all kinds of injustice and victimization in our country," Taksim Solidarity said in a statement posted on its website and later read out in the park. The group didn't say explicitly that it would remain in the park.

As the statement was read out, many among the gathered crowd clapped and began shouting, "This is just the beginning — the struggle continues!"

Although the most prominent group to emerge from the protests, Taksim Solidarity doesn't speak for everyone occupying Gezi. With many protesters saying they have no affiliation to any group or political party, many could make individual decisions on whether to stay or leave.

But there were few signs of anyone intending to pack up Saturday afternoon, and the daily activity in what has become a tent city continued with little indication of change. Deliveries of bottles of water and food arrived, people lined up for servings of lunch, while others cleared garbage and swept the paths clean after the morning rain.

According to the government's redevelopment plan for Taksim Square, the park would be replaced with a replica Ottoman-era barracks. Under initial plans, the construction would have housed a shopping mall, though that has since been amended to the possibility of an opera house, a theater and a museum with cafes.

Protesters angered by the project began occupying the park last month, but the police crackdown on May 31 saw the demonstrations spread to dozens of cities across the country. In recent days they have concentrated on Istanbul and the capital, Ankara.

The anger has been fanned because riot police have at times used tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets to disperse mostly peaceful protesters. Five people, including a police officer, have died and thousands of people have been injured — denting Erdogan's international reputation.

The announcement from Taksim Solidarity came as Erdogan's supporters were gearing up for their own pro-government rallies on Saturday and Sunday in Ankara and Istanbul.

On Thursday, Erdogan issued a "final" warning that the protesters must leave the park.

Earlier Saturday, President Abdullah Gul wrote on Twitter that "everyone should now return home," insisting that "the channels for discussion and dialogue" have opened — an apparent reference to the talks between Erdogan and a small group of delegates from the protest.

Overnight, police firing water cannon and tear gas dispersed protesters who erected street barricades near Turkey's parliament in the capital, Ankara. It was in the latest face-off between authorities and demonstrators over the park redevelopment plan and the police handling of the earliest days of the protests.

sourced from;  Yahoo news