KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 12: The Malaysia’s prime minister has defended the use of teargas and water cannon to break up a mass weekend protest for electoral reform, the biggest seen here in a decade, a report said on Monday.

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi also accused organisers of dragging the country’s revered king, who holds a largely ceremonial role in Malaysian society, into politics.

“I have left it to the police and they handled it very well and I am very happy. Such illegal assemblies ... will cause hardship and make many people angry,” Abdullah was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times.

But the Bar Council of Malaysia, which deployed 40 lawyers to monitor the protest, said the use of force by police was “unnecessary”. The gathering, despite being attended by tens of thousands, was disciplined and peaceful.

“The use of force to disperse unarmed and non-provocative crowds without prior warning was unnecessary,” Ambiga Sreenevasan, president of the Malaysian Bar, said in a statement.

Ambiga also criticised the police for allowing police helicopters to fly low, saying it was “provocative and a form of intimidation,” as well as dangerous.

Hundreds of police unleashed tear gas and water cannon on 30,000 protesters who, despite a government ban, marched Saturday from the city centre to the royal palace to hand over a memorandum calling for clean and fair elections.

Leading human rights group Suaram said up to 40 people were arrested, although police said 245 had been detained.

Organisers also said at least seven people were beaten and kicked by police and that some needed hospital treatment, including one man whose leg was broken.—AFP