mag3 wrote:

Islam Yes, one does see the Islamic orientation of this country but it's
not "in your face" at all.
in There is very little Arabic script as the national language is "Bahasa
Malaysia" (which uses
Malays. Romanized alphabet) and not Arabic.


Despite the nice facade you saw the fact that it is a mainly Islamic country
should be a red flag to you. What is the legal status of the women you saw,
their station in life? Did you see any Jews? Do gays have a place in
Malaysian society? Places like Dubai and Kuala Lumpur might put on a very
tempting face but anyone who values human rights surely would not choose to
live there permanently, especially if you are, say, a woman or Jewish or
homosexual. Frankly I would not dig being treated like chattel or a pariah
or being jailed or worse for my sexual orientation.

It's like visiting Berlin during the 1936 Olympics and saying "Wow! These
Germans have got a good thing going! They are friendly and nice and so
well - organised...Berlin is really beautiful and modern and we really did
not see any of that overt anti - semitism or anything political like
that..must just be rumours!.".


Some references for you:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-paci...es/1304569.stm

"Malaysia has some of the toughest censorship laws in the world. The
authorities exert substantial control over the media and restrictions may be
imposed in the name of national security.

The government is keen to insulate the largely-Muslim population from what
it considers harmful foreign influences on TV. News is subject to
censorship, entertainment shows and music videos regularly fall foul of the
censors, and scenes featuring swearing and kissing are routinely removed
from TV programmes and films.

[...]

Newspapers must renew their publication licences annually, and the home
minister can suspend or revoke publishing permits".


http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/01/21/malays6972.htm

"When Abdullah Badawi took over from Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in
October 2003, Malaysia's first change in leadership in more than two
decades, he sounded themes of democracy, good governance, and human rights
in his inauguration speech. The new administration, however, has yet to take
significant steps toward dismantling Malaysia's legal framework of
repression. Prominent human rights concerns in Malaysia include arbitrary
detention of alleged militants under the Internal Security Act (ISA); severe
restrictions on media freedom; constraints on judicial independence; and
abuses against refugees and migrants.

Restrictions on Media Freedom

Malaysia's media is largely devoid of serious criticism of the government.
Malaysians are fed a daily dose of positive news about their government, and
senior United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) politicians are
unfailingly featured in the day's headlines, always shown in a positive
light. The government maintains its control through a network of laws
curbing free expression, as well as through direct day-to-day monitoring and
control of the media. Opposition politicians and local activists have
trouble getting their message out, and strong criticism of government policy
almost never makes its way onto the pages of Malaysia's daily newspapers.
Television and radio are even more strictly controlled.

Even internet-based news sites, able to operate more freely due to
Malaysia's efforts to cast itself as a global center of cyber activity, risk
censure or even closure if they step too far out of line. In January 2003,
the offices of news website Malaysiakini were raided, and a number of
computer processors seized. Although most of the equipment was eventually
returned, Malaysiakini still operates under the threat of prosecution; the
government has yet to clear it of all charges. The ability of independent
media outlets like Malaysiakini to operate without restrictions in the
run-up to 2004 elections, which must be called before November, will be an
important barometer of press freedom."


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3196234.stm

"Malaysia defends speech on Jews

Dr Mahathir is due to step down at the end of October

Malaysia has sought to play down a row over remarks by its prime minister
about Jews "ruling the world".
Mahathir Mohamad's opening speech at a summit of Muslim leaders in the
Malaysian city of Putrajaya on Thursday has been condemned around the world.

But the speech, which received a standing ovation, has been endorsed by
other Muslim leaders.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said the premier's remarks about
Jews had been taken out of context.


Global debate: Islam and the West

It was a "speech addressed to Muslims asking them to work hard and affirm
their personality", said the minister, adding: "I'm sorry that they have
misunderstood the whole thing".

Mr Albar said the main point of the speech had been to persuade Muslims
against using violence to pursue their aims.

But the speech was criticised by Australian Foreign Minister Alexander
Downer, as well as the governments of the United States, Germany and Italy,
which holds the presidency of the European Union.

Anti-Nazi campaigners described Mr Mahathir's words as "an absolute
invitation for more hate crimes and terrorism against Jews".

The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which brings together 57
national leaders representing more than a billion Muslims worldwide, has
been meeting for the first time since the 11 September attacks on America,
and the US-led war on terrorism is dominating the agenda.

'Fight them'

In his speech, Dr Mahathir called on Muslims to use brains as well as brawn
to fight Jews who, he said, "rule the world by proxy".

The OIC brings together 57 nations home to one billion Muslims

He told the leaders of the Islamic world that 1.3 billion Muslims could not
be "defeated by a few million Jews".

"This tiny [Jewish] community has become a world power. We cannot fight them
through brawn alone. We must use our brains as well," he said.

Jews, said the Malaysian prime minister, had "invented socialism, communism,
human rights and democracy" to avoid persecution and gain control of the
most powerful countries.

He added that "the Jews" were "beginning to make mistakes" and Muslims could
have "windows of opportunity... in the future". "

[...]


http://www.time.com/time/asia/featur...alay.gay2.html

'Homosexuality is a Crime Worse Than Murder'
Interview with Malaysia's morality police
By MAGESWARY RAMAKRISHNAN

September 26, 2000
Web posted at 12:40 p.m. Hong Kong time, 12:40 a.m. EDT

Abdul Kadir Che Kob describes homosexuals as "shameless people" and
homosexuality as a "sin worse than murder." Abdul Kadir is head of education
and research at Malaysia's Islamic Affairs Department, which operates as the
morality police with 50 enforcement officers across the country. These
officers are empowered to arrest Muslims -- including unmarried couples,
homosexuals, transvestites and transsexuals -- suspected of breaking Islamic
laws. Last year, 111 men were arrested in Kuala Lumpur for "attempting to
commit homosexual acts." Abdul Kadir spoke recently to TIME contributor
Mageswary Ramakrishnan. Excerpts:
TIME: How does Islam perceive homosexuality?
Abdul Kadir: Homosexuality is forbidden in Islam. It is a crime worse than
murder.

TIME: What do you think of homosexuals?
Abdul Kadir: They are shameless people.

TIME: Can it be wrong for two people to be in love?
Abdul Kadir: Love? How can men have sex with men? God did not make them this
way. This is all Western influence -- and the gay people expect us to be
open- minded?

TIME: Your department made 111 arrests in Kuala Lumpur last year compared
with 165 in 1998 and 166 in 1997. Is this an indication that the number of
gays is decreasing?
Abdul Kadir: No, I don't think so. Perhaps they have become smarter in
avoiding us. Maybe the department received fewer complaints. We only act
based on complaints. It is difficult to act otherwise. How would we know
what is happening? We don't know what is happening behind closed doors.

TIME: What do you do when you receive a tip-off?
Abdul Kadir: Usually people give us precise information like where these men
are. We then go to the place, say, a hotel room. We knock and force them to
open the door, but they are usually fully clothed by then. We still charge
them for attempting to commit homosexual acts.

TIME: What about those who say that people have a right to choose who they
want to be with?
Abdul Kadir: What right are you talking about? This is a sin, end of story.

TIME: What about gay women?
Abdul Kadir: We have never arrested lesbian women. There are no complaints,
maybe because it is difficult to gauge who is a lesbian.

TIME: What happens when gay men are arrested?
Abdul Kadir: We charge them in court, but before that we put them through
what we call Islamic counseling sessions. They recite the Koran everyday and
we will tell them they have committed a grave sin.

TIME: Do these people change?
Abdul Kadir: It is difficult to make them change; it has to come from
within. I know there is very little effect. Out of 100 people, only one will
change.

TIME: If your approach is not working, then why not abandon it?
Abdul Kadir: No, we have to tell these people they are doing something very
wrong in the eyes of Allah [God]. It is a major sin. Gay people think being
gay is a fashion.

TIME: Malaysia has three major ethnic groups -- Malays, Chinese and Indians.
Is homosexuality more prevalent in some groups than others?
Abdul Kadir: It is prevalent among the Malays, I have to admit.

TIME: If homosexuality is just a fashion, why do you think so many Malay men
are willing to risk arrest by your department?
Abdul Kadir: Like I said, this is a Western influence. They also operate
very smoothly. Even if we know they are gay, we cannot arrest them unless we
receive information about them."


http://www.asiasource.org/asip/wao.cfm#malaysia

[...]

"I would now like to move on to to address the following inequalities and
discrimination that Malaysian women still face:

Citizenship

Malaysian women who are married to non-Malaysian men and give birth to
children outside of Malaysia cannot confer citizenship to their children,
these children are considered foreigners, into Malaysia. When a child is
born outside Malaysia, the child is not conferred citizenship by operation
of the law unless the father is a Malaysian citizen.5 A child whose mother
is a Malaysian citizen does not share the same privilege. The father must be
a Malaysian citizen in order for the child to be conferred citizenship in
Malaysia.

Immigration

Under Section 15 (1) the Federal Constitution foreign men who marry
Malaysian women cannot receive permanent residence ( P) status unlike
foreign women married to Malaysian men., although some reprieve has been
given that foreign husbands who are professionals wall be given work
permits, it still amounts to unequal opportunities for Malaysian women in
comparison to Malaysian men.

Violence Against Women

In 2000 alone, there were 1217 reported cases of rape and 3,468 cases of
domestic violence. Everyday women and girls are subjected physical, sexual
and psychological abuse, that cut across race and class. Laws relating to
rape, domestic violence and sexual harassment are still inadequate.

Rights of Muslim Women

Muslim women continue to face hardships in cases of divorce, polygamy,
custody, maintenance, and division of matrimonial property. There are
shortcomings in Syariah law and its implementation that contributes to the
abuse and injustice faced by Muslim women. For instance, while a man can
easily get divorce, the court is reluctant to grant a divorce without the
agreement of her husband.

These concrete examples of unequal treatment are not a mere flaw of the law
but it reflects a deeper value system by society. Deeply entrenched
attitudes and practices perpetuate inequality and discrimination against
women".

/

--
Best
Greg