Protestors throng Malaysian capital

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Tens of thousands of protesters rocked Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, demanding electoral reform amid claims of fraudulent activity.

More than 3,000 protesters defied a government ban Saturday and took to the capital streets calling for electoral reform ahead of general elections scheduled for early next year, CNN reported Sunday.

Police put up roadblocks and heightened security measures in an effort to close the city center after the Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said he would take measures to quell the demonstration.

"We are demanding that the (election) process be cleansed," CNN quoted opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as saying. "There is no such thing as fair elections in Malaysia at the moment."

The same political party has held power in Malaysia since 1957.