Penang Demo: The crowd is back

Anil:
The crowd is back in the open-air car park opposite Komtar. Ibrahim Ali is among those leading over 200 protesters gathered there.

Ibrahim Ali is addressing the crowd from the back of a lorry. He says the protest is peaceful. "Anyone against a peaceful protest is not part of our group. This gathering is not a racial gathering. I am here to defend the Bumiputera small traders affected by enforcement actoin. Kerajaan DAP bukan kerajaan wibawa. Even though the Malays and Muslims are a minority in Penang, the government shouldn't treat them like that and they shouldn't bow to the actions of the government and they should defend themselves."

It seems they have a permit. Not many police around. About 10 FRU personnel and about 50-60 uniformed police.

Ibrahim Ali says he agrees with Zahrain. "Guan Eng is a communist-minded person." Why are businesses owned by other races not demolished, he wants to know?

Ibrahim Ali claims that the three government of Selangor, Penang and Kelantan are not contributing to harmony but instead there is a lot of "kekecuhan". (I wonder who's causing the "kekecuhan".)

Ibrahim is moving in a lorry, on which hangs a big banner, which states, "Kami sanggup pertahankan Islam dan Melayu. Jangan cabar kesabaran Melayu. Melayu adalah tuan di tanah ini."

The lorry followed by the crowd are exiting the car park and now heading towards Komtar. They are probably going to circle Komtar in a procession.

The crowd of about 150 in Penang is now trying to get into the local government offices at the MPPP entrance on the third floor of the 65-storey Komtar tower, but the doors are shut.

One of the coordinators is now addressing the crowd, who are chanting "Allahu Akhbar!"

The crowd is now moving downstairs. Not quite sure what their plans are.

The crowd in Penang are now outside the Maybank at the ground floor of Komtar. Several others perhaps from nearby mosques have joined in, making it about 300 demonstrators in all watched by onlookers.

They are now trying to go in through the entrance near Maybank. The leaders insist on seeing Guan Eng personally to hand over the memorandum.