Tag: malaysia gay rights

Malaysia’s cruel religious ban on gay sex is to be challenged in an historic court case

A man in Malaysia has won the right to challenge a religious state law banning gay sex in the mostly Muslim country. According to Reuters, a lawyer for the man said on Wednesday (May 27) that Malaysia’s top court had him the go-ahead for the landmark LGBT+ rights test case. The Muslim man in his… Read more »

Malaysia sentences five men to jail, caning and fines for gay sex

Kuala Lumpur – A Malaysian religious court sentenced five men on Thursday to jail, caning and fines for attempting gay sex, media and a rights group said. Sodomy and same-sex acts are illegal under Islamic law in Muslim-majority Malaysia, although convictions are rare. The Selangor Shariah High Court, on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital,… Read more »

Its Pride month & I have never been so afraid. I live in Malaysia.

Our situation has only deteriorated – and we are terrified. We don’t get the privilege of celebrating Pride. We need help. Every year, when the month of June rolls around, butterflies of anticipation start to flutter in the hearts of the LGBT community. It is our month to celebrate, our month to raise awareness, and… Read more »

A LGBTI activist in Malaysia speaks out

Interview: LGBTI rights advocate Numan Afifi discusses how entrenched homophobia is in Malaysia A 96-second video of an apparent homophobic attack has been circulating in Malaysia this week. A group of individuals verbally abuse, then violently attack, two men. The group accused the two of having a sexual encounter in a car. A Malaysia-based LGBTI… Read more »

Malaysian LGBTI rights group calls for investigation into homophobic attack video

A video circulating in Malaysia appears to show a group attacking two men for allegedly having sex in a car An LGBTI rights group has called on the Malaysian authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into an apparent homophobic attack. The Pelangi Campaign has requested police to look into a video that appears to show… Read more »

Trans woman beaten to death in Malaysia

She suffered 32 different injuries including a fractured skull A gang of men beat a transgender woman to death in the city of Klang in Malaysia, according to local media. The 32-year-old woman died from injuries caused by blunt weapons on Wednesday (12 December) night, the Star Online reports. A local police chief told the… Read more »

Malaysian official plays down claim there are 310,000 ‘homosexuals’ in the country

A senior officer from the Islamic Development Department said this week the country had ‘rehabilitated’ 1,450 LGBTI Malaysians A senior officer from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) on Tuesday (31 October) said his earlier remark that there were 310,000 homosexuals in Malaysia was only ‘preliminary’. On Monday, Jakim’s Mohd Izwan Md Yusof said the… Read more »

Stop using LGBTI Malaysians as ‘punching bag’ warns lawyer group

Lawyers for Liberty was responding to calls from political leader, Anwar Ibrahim, to reject LGBTI ‘lifestyle’ Malaysia’s leaders must stop using the LGBTI community for political gain, said local civil society group Lawyers for Liberty. It comes as LGBTI Malaysians feel increasingly persecuted under Malaysia’s nascent new government. ‘The LGBT have to live in hiding… Read more »

2 Terengganu Women To Be Caned For Having Sex In A Car

  They were also fined RM3,300 each. On 12 August, the Terengganu Syariah court sentenced two women to six canes and a RM3,300 fine each after they pleaded guilty to having sex in a car New Straits Times reported that the women admitted to breaking an Islamic law which bans sexual relations between women. Punishment… Read more »

Malaysia Begins Blocking Online AIDS/HIV and LGBT Travel Information

TMNet, a Malaysian Internet Service provider, has begun tampering with Internet DNS domain names to prevent users in Malaysia from accessing HIV/AIDS and LGBT travel information online. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia In an unprecedented move for a multi-cultural tourism destination, Malaysia has begun to block Internet access to public information about HIV/AIDS and LGBT travel, effecting… Read more »

Small victories can’t stop the dangers for LGBTIQ people in Southeast Asia

A new report found the LGBTIQ community in Southeast Asia is experiencing ‘small steps sideways, big steps back’ The situation for LGBTIQ people in Southeast Asia has deteriorated, despite some small victories in the region. Rising influential conservative social forces had led to the increasing criminalization and pathologization of LGBTIQ people in the region. A… Read more »

Malaysia among Asia-Pacific countries with most new AIDS infections

A United Nations report finds that Malaysia is one of the 10 countries which together accounted for over 95% of all new HIV infections in the Asia-Pacific region, Bernama reported today. The report, compiled by the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) “Ending AIDS: Progress Towards the 90-90-90 Targets”, said the other nine Asia-Pacific countries that had… Read more »

What happens when a man contracts HIV in Malaysia

Humans of Kuala Lumpur About seven percent of men who have sex with men (MSM) are HIV-positive, and the trend is likely to rise, the Malaysian Aids Council (MAC) says. However, it is difficult for these men to come forward and seek assistance because they are often stigmatised – for being HIV-positive and then for… Read more »

Gay Malaysian student given refugee status in Canada after threats

An out gay Malaysian student has been given refugee status in Canada after receiving threats. Hazim Ismail, who says he is an atheist, was granted leave to stay in Canada by the country’s Immigration and Refugee Board. He had been attacked due to his sexual orientation back in Malaysia The University of Winnipeg student will… Read more »

This guy explains what it is like growing old with HIV in Malaysia

Andrew Tan from Malaysia, was diagnosed with HIV in 1994. He was 24 years-old at that time and didn’t expect to live beyond his twenties. Today he is 55 years-old and open about his status and being a gay man. As another World AIDS Day is marked, UNAIDS speaks with Mr Tan about his many… Read more »

Being LGBT In Southeast Asia: Stories Of Abuse, Survival And Tremendous Courage

LGBT groups in Southeast Asia are working double-time to bring about change. This is a 10-part series on LGBT rights in Southeast Asia, which uncovers the challenges facing the LGBT community in the region and highlights the courageous work of activists there. For the next nine days, we’ll be telling the stories of each country… Read more »

Malaysian court rules transgender people ‘mentally ill’

Bangkok, Thailand — There’s some good news for transgender Muslim women in Malaysia. An influential court ruling says police can’t persecute them under religious law just for wearing dresses and lipstick. Keeping the police away, however, may require a demeaning concession: getting certified as mentally ill. Malaysia is a bastion of conservative Islam, a tropical… Read more »

Ongoing fight for trans rights in Malaysia

Transgender people in Malaysia may soon have fewer legal barriers to expressing their gender freely, thanks to a recent ruling in a state appeals court. The Malaysia Court of Appeal in the city of Putrajaya ruled last month that three trans women were not bound by legal prohibitions on “impersonating” someone of the opposite gender.… Read more »

Malaysian religious police raid hotel, arrest two women for sharing room

Malaysia: Malaysian religious police arrested a lesbian couple after raiding a hotel room in Johor Baru where they were staying, media reported. The two young women had been arrested by officers of the Johor Islamic Religious Department, according to outinperth.com citing a Sinar Harian newspaper report. The newspaper reported nine officers searching the hotel when… Read more »