SEKRETARIAT Solidariti Rakyat (SSR), known for its black flag protest at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic a year ago, is predicting a strong social media backlash due to the price hikes as Muslims celebrate Hari Raya Aidiladha next week.

Unlike during its protest against the Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration, the group said more is needed to create a narrative that the current Barisan Nasional-led government has failed to address the price hike issue.

The youth-based group was among several organisations that had called for the then prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s resignation after PN’s poor handling of the pandemic last year.

A year ago, the group launched its black flag campaign, urging the public to fly a black flag as a sign of protest against PN and had urged social media users to use the #kerajaangagal and #keluardanlawan hashtags.

SSR had demanded Muhyiddin reconvene parliament and end the emergency ordinance, which many believed was used to keep him in power.

The campaign spread widely, forcing the police to initiate investigations under the Sedition Act and section 233 of the Communication and Multimedia Act.

That was in the past, said an SSR spokesman who wished anonymity.

“At the moment, we are supporting the campaign by student bodies. We backed them in terms of strategy but the idea came from the students,” he said.

“The sentiment is building up. In any movement, there will be a question of ‘will it be effective’, but for me, there will be more protests, especially in the run-up to Hari Raya Aidiladha.

“People who haven’t realised how bad the situation is will eventually realise that prices are high and we can expect a social media backlash this week as many will vent their anger on social media.”

In July last year, SSR also placed fake corpses at the Dataran Merdeka, which symbolised the rising number of Covid-19 cases as well as suicides due to the hardships people experienced from the loss of jobs and income.

The spokesman did not rule out that there may be a protest organised by youth groups, although the matter has not been discussed.

“I would not say no (to having a protest) but many of us are under police watch after the black flag and fake bodies protests,” he said.

“We will see… what is important now is every organisation has to be mobilised and be told about the current situation. It is our responsibility.

“Who knows, maybe the trade unions will also stage a protest. What we need now is the support from the entire class of people.”

Student bodies from various universities recently said it will continue to hold street protests if the government fails to address the rising cost of living.

They said if the government fails to listen to their demand, then they will organise another protest in the weeks to come.

Last Friday, about 200 students and members from civil society groups turned up at the Central Market in Kuala Lumpur to protest the rising prices of goods.

International Islamic University Malaysia student union president Aliff Naif said they cannot keep quiet when the people are in a difficult situation.

He said it is their duty to voice out the issues faced by the people and demand justice.

However, eight youths involved in the student unions’ #Turun Speakers’ Corner protest have been called up by the Dang Wangi police.

In a joint statement, the Gabungan Gerakan Mahasiswa student body coalition called on the authorities not to intimidate those who took part in the peaceful gathering.

The group believes that the right to assemble is enshrined in the Federal Constitution. – July 7, 2022.