KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 — Umno Youth members today blocked a group of students at the party’s assembly here from handing a memorandum to Datuk Seri Najib Razak to protest the forced eviction of Malay settlers on Malay reserve land.
The group of 50 students from Gerakan Mahasiswa Malaysia (Gamis) had earlier marched from a nearby mosque after Friday prayers towards Putra World Trade Centre where Umno’s 65th annual general assembly is currently taking place.
But as the group neared the entrance, a group of Umno Youth members from the Brigade Kesatria Muda led by Armand Azha Abu Haniffa blocked the march, leading to a scuffle between the two groups.
Police on the scene helped to defuse the tension, which ended with Gamis leader Abdul Malik Razak backing down and agreeing to hand over the memorandum to Armand Azha instead.
Among the demands made in the memorandum is the call for Putrajaya to stop encroaching on Malay reserve land and heritage villages, ensuring 50 per cent of Malay reserve land remain under Malay control and to protect Malay heritage land, such as urban settlements like Kampung Chubadak and Kampung Puah Seberang in Sentul here.
Both these settlements are located in the city centre and were recently cleared off for development.
Critics and opposition leaders have asserted that the forced eviction of Malay settlements proved claims that Umno masks its pro-business policies with communal rhetoric.
The party has denied the allegations and maintain that it is the only political organisation that protects Malay interests.
