Dulu Lawan Kerajaan. Sekarang Kerajaan Lawan Rakyat.
There is a cruel irony in Malaysian politics.
Dulu, turun ke jalan raya was called courage.
Sekarang, turun ke jalan raya is called a threat.
Dulu, jerit itu “suara rakyat”.
Now, jerit itu becomes “provocation”.
The street didn’t change.
The people didn’t change.
Only power changed hands.
At one point, Reformasi lived on the streets.
Today, Reformasi dies at the police gate.
The message from the top is short and brutal:
“Tangkap. Humban.”
Anwar Ibrahim now stands exactly where he once stood against.
This is not about personal betrayal.
That argument is too easy.
This is about memory.
And who gets to rewrite it.
Thousands filled the streets during Reformasi.
And I remember it clearly, because I was only 14 years old.
I remember one night when both my parents didn’t come home.
No phone calls.
No explanations.
Just silence stretching into the next day.
Then the phone rang.
Our family lawyer called:
Both your parents are in lockup.
They were arrested while demonstrating in front of Dang Wangi.
That was Reformasi.
And back then, arrests were called oppression.
Today, arrests are sold as law enforcement.
Dulu ditangkap sebab lawan kerajaan.
Sekarang ditangkap sebab ganggu kerajaan.
Same street.
Different excuses.
Let’s be honest.
No government enjoys being challenged.
No Prime Minister likes crowds that cannot be controlled.
But don’t insult rakyat by pretending we forgot.
Rakyat don’t march because they enjoy chaos.
Rakyat march because nothing else gets heard.
When every protest is criminalised,
that’s not stability.
That’s fear rebranded as order.
When rakyat whisper, government ignores.
When rakyat shout, government arrests.
The saddest part?
Those cheering “tangkap” today
are often the same people who once shouted “bebaskan”.
Back then, lockups were proof of injustice.
Today, lockups are framed as governance.
The law didn’t change.
Who stands above it did.
Kawan kena tangkap, kita kata zalim.
Lawan kena tangkap, kita kata adil.
This is the real danger.
Not demonstrations.
Not banners.
Not slogans.
The real danger is a government that believes disappointment can be policed.
Malaysia has seen this before.
Rakyat can stay silent for years.
But when they speak, batons and lockups don’t stop ideas.
I know because I was once a child waiting at home, wondering where my parents were.
Reformasi was never meant to inherit power.
Reformasi was meant to restrain it.
If Reformasi ends the moment Putrajaya is secured,
then it was never Reformasi.
RAJA SARA PETRA
Raja Sara Petra (rajasarapetra@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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