Homosexuality in Malaysia

Malaysia

Homosexuality is a criminal offense in Malaysia, but it is increasingly being discussed in public and in the media. The current focus is on the political debate about the opposition politician Anwar Ibrahim .

Legal situation

Unlike most of the other neighboring Southeast Asian countries, homosexuality is a criminal offense in Malaysia . By Section 377 of the Malaysian Penal Code homosexual acts are punished. Consensual homosexual acts between adults can also be punished with up to 20 years in prison and can be beaten with a stick. However, criminal prosecution will only take place if a complaint is made.

Due to the criminal nature of Malaysia, there are no anti-discrimination laws to protect sexual orientation . Since 1994, public appearances by LGBT people in the state-controlled media have been prohibited by law. In 2006, Admiral Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor declared that LGBT people were not allowed into the military. In 2007, Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad said that LGBT people in Islamic Malaysia are not allowed to hold public office. In this context, he defamed the Malaysian opposition politician Anwar Ibrahim .

In the states of Penang and Malacca, the laws are to be tightened drastically: In the future, homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals will not only be punished there according to Section 377 of the penal code. They are also threatened by Sharia, Islamic law. Even heterosexual "inactive supporters" who stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians should be punished in Malaysia in the future.

On the part of the state, same-sex couples are not recognized due to their illegality. There are therefore no civil partnerships or same-sex marriages .

Social situation

Homosexuality is currently a hotly debated topic in the media and the general public in Malaysia and is a political issue as a result of the campaigns against the politician and former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is married to Wan Azizah Wan Ismail . At the center of the dispute is Ibrahim, who was sentenced to imprisonment for alleged homosexual acts. After an early release from prison and the reversal of the sentence, Ibrahim is again politically active and was elected as a member of the Malaysian parliament at the end of August 2008. Ibrahim has objected to the illegality of homosexuality.

The daughter of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Marina Mahathir , called for an end to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in October 1998. As a result of these domestic power struggles in Malaysia, the issue of homosexuality has become highly emotional. There is hardly any homosexual community due to the illegality. The life of LGBT people has been pushed underground and is largely hidden.

The situation of homosexuals in Malaysia has worsened over the past few years. In November 2011, the government banned the gay and lesbian festival Seksualiti Merdeka (English: "Sexual Freedom"), which since 2008 has attracted around 1,500 participants in Kuala Lumpur every year. Reason for the ban: The event threatens national security.

In January 2012, the Supreme Court in the capital Kuala Lumpur acquitted Anwar Ibrahim for good. The hoped-for departure for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender and intersexuals, however, was already massively dampened on March 1, 2012: The Supreme Court was not even allowed to review the police ban at the Seksualiti Merdeka festival because “the judicial review of police decisions is the country would destabilize ”.

In February 2015, the Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was finally sentenced to five years in prison for an alleged homosexual relationship with an employee. Anwar himself and human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch criticized the process as politically motivated.

See also

• Laws on homosexuality
• Equality (homosexuals)

Web links

• LPG Malaysia
• Pink Triangle Foundation Malaysia

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Malaysia: Travel and Security Advice, Federal Foreign Office, as of December 12, 2008
2. ↑ ILGA: Malaysia ( Memento of the original from June 13, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
3. ↑ Today: No Homosexuals in Malaysian Navy, Says Chief ( June 25, 2007 memento on the Internet Archive ) on Sodomylaws.org, February 25, 2005.
4. ^ Advocate: Former PM says gays should not rule mostly Muslim Malaysia , January 9, 2007
5. ↑ Govt to act against organizers of sexuality programs ( Memento of the original from November 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Sun Daily, Nov. 9, 2011 issue; Accessed January 1, 2012  
6. ↑ Law governing unnatural sex to stay, Seksualiti Merdeka and the likes to remain illegal ( Memento of the original dated November 9, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Star Online, November 8, 2011 issue; Accessed January 1, 2012  
7. ↑ Malaysia hunts homosexuals , Spiegel-Online from January 1, 2012; Accessed January 1, 2012
8. ↑ Pahang aims to act against gays and lesbians, too ( Memento of the original dated December 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Star Online, November 10, 2011 issue; Accessed January 1, 2012  
9. ↑ BBC News: Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim arrested , July 16, 2008
10. ↑ USA Today: Malaysian opposition chief wins parliament seat , August 26, 2008
11. ↑ Queer: opposition leader criticizes ban on gay men ; January 6, 2012
12. ↑ BBC News: World: Asia-Pacific PM's daughter slams Malaysian anti-gay group , October 23, 1998
13. ↑ NZZ: acquittal for Malaysian opposition leader Ibrahim , January 9, 2012
14. ↑ Amnesty: Malaysia court may not review police ban of the Festival for Sexual Rights ( Memento of the original from April 8, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , March 1, 2012 
15. ↑ Seksualiti Merdeka (= variety): Seksualiti Merdeka fails to get ban reviewed ( Memento of the original from April 22, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , March 1, 2012 
16. ^ Opposition chief must be imprisoned for homosexuality , Die Welt Online of February 10, 2015