Malaysia's government threatened Saturday to use a draconian security law against opposition parties which it says are exploiting serious ethnic clashes.
Laws like the Internal Security Act would be used if "certain political parties" took advantage of the present situation to divide the people and to project their struggle through force, said Rais Yatim, the minister for legal affairs.
"The government should not be pressured or faulted if it takes action against elements instigating people to fight each other and create problems from the aspect of public order and internal security," he said.
Police are already investigating opposition leaders for sedition after the leaders cast doubt on the official death toll of six -- five Indians and an Indonesian -- in four days of clashes involving ethnic Indians and Malays.
They have also announced a ban on all gatherings, including political events, in the central state of Selangor. Opposition officials have described the ban as absurd, saying the unrest was not linked to politics.
Rais, quoted by Bernama newa agency, said the government would take firm action against anyone trying to disrupt public order.
"Action can be taken under the Public Order Act or Sedition Act 1948, the Emergency Ordinance 1969 and the Internal Security Act (ISA), all of which are still in force," he said.
The ISA, which allows indefinite detention without trial, is a relic of British colonial times when it was used to combat a 12-year communist insurrection.
Even before the four-day clashes broke out on March 8 authorities were mounting a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations. One opposition leader has been charged with sedition over his alleged call for protests to topple the government. He denies the remarks.
Ruling party politicians earlier kept up attacks on alleged opposition attempts to make political capital out of the worst ethnic clashes for decades.
Mustapa Mohamed, information chief of the United Malays National Organisation, said the opposition was treading on dangerous ground by exploiting every issue for political objectives.
"If the situation is not controlled, it could lead to chaos," he told reporters Friday night.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has also accused the opposition of exploiting the clashes by visiting the injured in hospital. They are trying to incite the poor to protest against the government, he charged.
Members of Mahathir's own ruling coalition also visited the injured on Friday.
Police Saturday announced that a third man had been arrested for spreading rumours about the violence which broke out in poor districts of Petaling Jaya town west of Kuala Lumpur.
The telecommunications technician had been "creating stories" at the company's canteen, according to a complaint to police in the northern city of Ipoh.
It was not clear what offence he would be charged with.
On Friday two men who admitted possessing parangs (machetes) were each jailed for six months. They were among 43 men charged that day with offences related to the clashes.
Another 34 were charged Thursday and one man found with an iron bar was jailed for three months.
Most have pleaded not guilty to a variety of charges -- possessing weapons including samurai swords and parangs, assault or illegal assembly.
They have been bailed pending trial despite objections from prosecutors.
Hundreds of policemen -- paramilitaries with M-16 rifles, riot squads and regular officers -- are still stationed in Kamping Medan and other run-down areas -- KUALA LUMPUR (AFP)
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