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(CNN) — More than 1,600 demonstrators have been arrested in Malaysia, Police say, after 
clashing with riot police Saturday as they marched in the capital Kuala Lumpur to demand electoral reforms.
clashing with riot police Saturday as they marched in the capital Kuala Lumpur to demand electoral reforms.Police fired tear gas as several thousand people gathered near a sports stadium where the demonstrators had planned to rally.
Some 1,667 people had been arrested as of early evening local time, according to the Royal Malaysia Police, with 16 children among them. Protest organizers said at a news conference earlier in the day that about 400 had been detained.
The protest, which the government says is illegal, was organized by a loose coalition of opposition groups known as Bersih 2.0.
The government has previously declared Bersih an illegal organization. Police said that anyone found with Bersih-related materials, such as yellow T-shirts, could be arrested.
Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was among hundreds of protesters who gathered at the Hilton hotel in Kuala Lumpur before heading toward the Sentral Station. There the protesters breached police lines to march through the rail station, before being met by riot Police with tear gas on the other side.
Ibrahim posted on his Twitter account that he had sustained a minor injury during the demonstration and that a staff member had been badly hurt. He also said his youngest daughter had been arrested.Writing on his blog ahead of the protest, Ibrahim said the “intended peaceful gathering” was to bring Malaysians together “as one united people in pursuit of clean and fair elections.”
He went on: “Our reason for gathering is pure and simple — to demand that the electoral roll be cleaned, that the postal voting system be reformed, that indelible ink be used, a minimum 21 day campaign period be instated, free and fair access to media for all be provided, public institutions be strengthened, and for corruption as well as dirty politics to be stopped.”
The protesters planned to rally at the Merdeka sports stadium in the city, Ibrahim said. Opposition groups have been seeking to put pressure on Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government, which has been in power for decades, ahead of elections expected to be called next year.
The Malaysian state news agency Bernama reported that the prime minister had attended an
event Saturday at which he described the protest as “an illegal rally organised by a section of our community.”
event Saturday at which he described the protest as “an illegal rally organised by a section of our community.”“If there are people who want to hold the illegal rally, there are even more who are against their plan to hold the illegal gathering,” he is quoted as saying.
There was a strong police presence around the city and many roads had been closed off, local media reports said.
A similar demonstration called by the Bersih coalition in 2007 was broken up by Police using water cannon and tear gas, local reports say.
The “success” of the Bersih 2.0 rally for electoral reform today was soured by the death of Baharuddin Ahmad, the husband of the Setiawangsa PKR Wanita division chief.
The Malaysian Insider understands that Baharuddin, who was marching along with the thousands who turned up today in support of Bersih 2.0, died when he fell during a scuffle with police at KLCC this afternoon.
Police confirmed earlier today that 1,401 of the estimated 6,000 protestors were detained during the gathering, which lasted for over four hours.
Scuffles reportedly broke out between protestors and the armed riot police when the march, which was originally intended to be peaceful, descended into chaos.
Tear gas canisters and water cannons were also fired at various points across the city as the police attempted to force protestors to disperse.
This is Bersih 2.0’s second such rally since 2007 calling for free and fair elections. Its leaders attempted to march to Istana Negara today to hand a memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong but were held back by the police about 200m away.
At a press conference after the crowd slowly began to disperse, Bersih 2.0 declared that the rally had been a success, claiming it had drawn a crowd of over 50,000 supporters despite efforts by the police over the past few weeks to restrict the turnout.
CNN’s Eve Bower contributed to this report
More than 20,000 people demonstrated for electoral reforms across Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital, on Saturday in a rare protest that was declared illegal by police. The protest was called for by opposition groups, including the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, Bersih (Clean). Police fired tear-gas and water cannons at demonstrators and arrested more than 1,400 people, including top opposition leaders, according to protest organisers. The activists’ demands include an overhaul of voter registration lists, tougher measures to curb fraud and fairer opportunities for opposition politicians to campaign in government-linked media. Malaysia’s next general election is planned due in 2013.
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| 1) With Kuala Lumpur under police lockdown since the morning, protesters tried to gather and seek refuge inside a railway station before being led outside by police where many were detained and put into police vans. [Saeed Khan/AFP] |
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| 2) Protesters display the yellow shirts of the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections, or Bersih (Clean}, during a rally calling for electoral reforms in Kuala Lumpur [Ahmad Yusni/EPA] |
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| 3) Riot police stand making a cordon in front of Malaysia’s iconic twin towers before demonstrators gather [Saeed Khan/AFP] |
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| 4) A Bersih supporter shouts at police during clashes in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Shahir Omar/Reuters] |
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| 5) Police use a water cannon to spray Bersih supporters in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Samsul Said/Reuters] |
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| 6) A Bersih supporter throws a water bottle at a police water-cannon truck [Mohd Rasfan/AFP] |
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| 7) Police face off against thousands of Bersih supporters [Saeed Khan/AFP] |
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| 8) A Bersih supporter holds the Malaysian flag in front of a police water cannon [Damir Sagolj/Reuters]) |
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| 9) Police in riot gear march under heavy rain toward protesters calling for electoral reforms [Saeed Khan/AFP |
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| 10) Police face off against thousands of protesters in a scene shrouded by tear gas [Saeed Khan/AFP] |
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| 11) A Bersih supporter is detained by police during protests in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Damir Sagolj/Reuters] |
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| 12) A Bersih supporter is detained by police during protests in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Saedd Khan/AFP] |
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| 13) Bersih supporters are detained by police during protests in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Damir Sagolj/Reuters] |
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| 14) Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (C) is surrounded by supporters, one of whom is injured, after a protest in Kuala Lumpur calling for electoral reforms [AFP] |
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| 15) Bersih supporters chant slogans during a protest calling for electoral reforms in downtown Kuala Lumpur [Damir Sagolj/Reuters] |
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