The Malaysian government is restricting access into its capital Kuala Lumpur and has stepped up its crackdown on the Bersih 2.0 movement ahead of tomorrow’s planned day of protests for electoral reform.

Entry into Kuala Lumpur has now been restricted in an attempt to prevent protesters from assembling. According to Malaysian sources, police have been mounting roadblocks in KL since Wednesday, on the basis of the need to search for weapons, and the Land Public Transport Commission has said temporary bus permits would not be issued for buses entering the city on the weekend. Tonight, bus services will be re-routed as police close off roads leading into the city centre.

Late yesterday, a “restriction order” was issued against 91 individuals linked to the movement and opposition, preventing them from joining the protest.

This is despite the movement agreeing, following a meeting with the Malaysian King, to shift its protests tomorrow to a stadium rather than hold it in the streets of KL. Bizarrely, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin accused the movement of being “provocative” after its compromise.

And the movement expects that, in a tactic straight from the playbook of Middle-Eastern dictators, the government will suspend or dramatically slow internet and mobile phone services to prevent them being used to co-ordinate or cover the planned demonstrations. Malaysian sources also say that police have threatened to arrest anyone warning about, or pointing out that internet or mobile phone services have been cut.

So far, Malaysian police have arrested hundreds of people simply for wearing Bersih-related clothing, in addition to their usual heavy-handed treatment of opposition figures. Recently six reform activists, including an MP, were arrested, detained and then re-arrested on release on the grounds of “waging war against the king.”

The Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, is said to have warned, in Malay in order to avoid coverage in international media, of “crushed bodies, broken bones, and dead bodies” in response to the protests. There are also claims police had undertaken “live fire” exercises with the Malaysian Army involving a drill called “Disperse or we shoot you”, although this is regarded as an attempt at pre-emptive intimidation by the government.

Protests are also planned across the region, with rallies planned for tomorrow in Australian state capitals and Canberra, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, and several US and European cities.