Growing dissent making it tougher for M'sian leaders to defuse crisis

A STREET protest by tens of thousands (and arguably more) of reform-hungry Malaysians clad in yellow over the past weekend in Kuala Lumpur has done little to shake down Malaysia's crisis-hit government. But it captured worldwide attention and has bruised the country's image.

It is also a sign that the Malaysian electorate is being increasingly turned off by "politics as usual". Dissatisfied by the government's handling of corruption and abuse of power allegations and the economy, the Malaysian public collectively marched in protest. And this time it was peaceful - a feat given the significant turnout.

The past rallies organised by the same electoral reform group Bersih ended up in chaos, with hundreds of arrests and allegations of heavy-handed police response.