ABSTRACT

This article critically examines the models of protest policing deployed by the Malaysian police during the BERSIH 2.0 wave of protests (2011–2016). Based on participant observation and critical ethnography of these protest events, it explains how the state and police adapted to the surge of street protests in Kuala Lumpur by bringing together various elements of policing practices in its attempt to contain dissent on the streets. I argue that the new ‘Peaceful Assembly assemblage’ of policing practices, though distinct and significantly different in its overall governing logic compared to its predecessor, it remains heavily connected to late colonial forms of public order and counterinsurgent policing, especially the Special Branch and the Federal Reserve Unit (riot police). In this sense, the article shows that colonial policing’s afterlife is a major factor for understanding how Malaysia’s protest policing experience complicates and departs from patterns of protest policing development observed in the Global North.

摘要

本文批判性地研究了马来西亚警方在 BERSIH 2.0 抗议浪潮（2011-2016 年）期间部署的抗议警务模式。基于对这些抗议事件的参与者观察和批判性民族志，它解释了国家和警方如何通过汇集治安实践​​的各种要素来遏制街头抗议活动，从而适应吉隆坡街头抗议活动的激增。我认为，新的“和平集会”警务实践，尽管与其前身相比在总体治理逻辑上截然不同且显着不同，但它仍然与晚期殖民形式的公共秩序和反叛乱警务密切相关，特别是特别部门和联邦储备部队（防暴警察）。在这个意义上说，