KUALA LUMPUR, April 28 — The magistrate’s order prohibiting the Sabah chapter of Bersih 2.0 from holding a May Day rally in Kota Kinabalu was unlawful as it contradicts previous decisions by superior courts, Lawyers for Liberty said today.

The civil liberties group also criticised the state police for “surreptitiously” seeking the order despite knowing that such a move was already ruled unlawful and unconstitutional in previous cases.

“Kota Kinabalu police chief assistant commissioner M. Chandra should not feign ignorance and must know that such an order was set aside and declared unlawful by the Court of Appeal in January 2014, when Azmin Ali and Badrul Hisham challenged such an order which purportedly barred them from participating in the Bersih 3.0 rally in 2012,” he said in a statement.

He added that requirements for notice of rallies as required under the Section 9(5) of Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 (PAA) was “null and void” since the Court of Appeal declared them “unconstitutional” last year.

Sabah police yesterday obtained a court order to bar the May 1 rally, citing reasons such as fears that the event will disrupt public peace and order.

City police chief assistant commissioner of police M. Chandra said the magistrate court’s order covers five main open areas in the city including the Padang Merdeka field where the rally was originally planned for.

The court order, from April 27 to May 3 also includes City Park, Segama waterfront, Dataran Bandaraya and Taman Chong Thien Vun and its surroundings.

He warned members of the public not to assemble or take part in the gathering, saying they will face action under the law.

Under Section 188 of the Penal Code, those convicted for going against a court order from Section 98 of the Criminal Procedure Code may be fined RM2,000 or jailed for up to six months or both.

He said the organisers also stand to face a fine of RM10,000 for not abiding by the rules under the Peaceful Assembly Act.

The rally, supported by some 48 civil society groups, is aiming to gather around 10,000 people for the two-hour event from 3pm to 5pm, next Friday to talk about their grievances on illegal immigrants, land rights, and the newly-implemented goods and services tax among others.