KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 7 — The organisers of Himpunan Rakyat Bersatu this September 16 have claimed that at least 300,000 people will turn up for their rally in the streets of the capital.

Gabungan NGO-NGO Malaysia chairman Datuk Jamal Md Yunos was quoted by Utusan Malaysia as saying that this will include 500 Malay organisations from across the country who have given their commitment to be part of the rally.

“Whatever the obstacle, be it a storm, rain or earthquake, this rally will happen,” he told the Malay daily.

“We must ‘thank’ the Bersih 4 illegal rally because through that rally which brought many slogans insulting the Malay leadership, it has lead to the Malays uniting for this September 16 rally,” Jamal added.

Jamal said the rally will be held at several locations, with participants expected to gather peacefully at popular spots like Bukit Bintang and Petaling Street.

He claimed that there is no reason for the authorities to stop their counter rally, since they allowed Bersih 4 to go ahead with their programme despite a ban and having interfered with preparations for the Merdeka Day celebrations.

Jamal added that the authorities have ignored the requests of Malay traders at Masjid India, Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman and Dataran Merdeka against allowing the Bersih rallies, claiming that their business had been affected by the demonstrations allegedly controlled by DAP supporters.

“All this while we have kept quiet not because we are not angry but we listen to the instructions of the authorities who are abiding by the law against holding protests.

“But this time, we will not bow down, we will rally. Many police reports were lodged against this rally including by DAP leaders.

“We would like to ask why must they feel concerned when this Malay rally was sparked by their own actions in organising Bersih which is dirty, which insulted the Malays,” he said.