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Tag: LGBT movement

  • Dr Mahatahir: If You Understand Your Religion, You Will Never Be Gay

     

    Credit: Reuters
    Credit: Reuters

    KUALA LUMPUR, June 4 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad suggested today that homosexuality would not exist if people were strong in their religious beliefs.

    The former prime minister said homosexuality is now prevalent because the gay and lesbian communities have been following their emotions and lust.

    “If you understand your religion, you will never be gay,” the 88-year-old said after a lecture in the International Islamic University Malaysia  here.

    “If you strengthen your faith, your iman, then you’ll never be gay,” he added.

    Dr Mahathir was answering a question by a student — a nephew of former New Straits Times group chief editor Datuk A. Kadir Jasin — who asked for a way to curb the spread of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) movement in Malaysia.

    Dr Mahathir said that one of the dangers posed by the LGBT community is that they cannot have children, despite religion prescribing sex as a way to procreate.

    “It is good that they are having gay marriages, very soon they will disappear,” Dr Mahathir added, referring to the Western world.

    Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak objected to the inclusion of LGBT rights when signing Asean’s first human rights charter in 2012, saying Malaysia could not accept principles that went against the order of human nature.

    In the same year, the Education Ministry was forced to deny endorsing any guideline on spotting homosexuality symptoms among schoolchildren, following its then deputy minister’s apparent support for a controversial list that has triggered widespread disapproval.

    Mohd Puad Zarkashi, who was the then-deputy education minister, also said in March last year that his ministry may look into extending a parenting seminar on how to curb LGBT activities, to all districts in order to reach out to a wider group.

    International news wire Reuters reported the federal government as acknowledging last year that it has been working to curb the homosexuality “problem” prevalent among Muslims who form 60 per cent of Malaysia’s 28 million population.

    Homosexuality in itself is not a crime in Malaysia but is taboo in the religiously-conservative society, including among followers of Islam.

    Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/those-with-strong-faith-wont-ever-be-gay-dr-m-says

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  • NUS Law Prof Lynette Chua Launch Book Called Mobilizing Gay Singapore

    Credit: http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/
    Credit: http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/

    SINGAPORE — What are the legal restrictions and political norms that affect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community? How did they organise themselves and engage the state, eventually organising the first public gay rally, Pink Dot, in 2009?

    These are the themes examined in a new book by law professor Lynette Chua from the National University of Singapore (NUS) on the LGBT movement. Launched yesterday, the 168-page volume was based on in-depth interviews with gay activists here and government statements and media reports on the issue. Called Mobilizing Gay Singapore, it looks at the LGBT movement’s emergence, development and strategies, and how the roles of law and rights play out in the process.

    Speaking to TODAY at the book launch at the NUS Centre for Asian Legal Studies at the Faculty of Law, Associate Professor Chua said the book is aimed at trying to understand the social-legal history of the movement. The book, she said, could have a reflective impact on activists regarding their roles and could be informative for those who are not knowledgeable about the movement. The book was written in her personal capacity as a social-legal scholar and does not represent NUS’ views, she said.

    During the panel discussion at the launch with Assoc Prof Chua, NUS law professor Michael Hor and NUS Department of Sociology Assoc Prof Daniel Goh, an audience member asked how local political parties could take a stronger stand on the LGBT movement.

    In response, Assoc Prof Goh said political parties have to be pragmatic to remain in the game and cannot be the vanguard of a movement that is about minority rights.

    Added Assoc Prof Chua: “Like it or not, many of the activists believe the desire for a state of equal rights for LGBT or legal reform will not come from the opposition party … The Opposition is simply too weak just trying to get a foothold in local politics.”

    Copyright 2014 MediaCorp Pte Ltd | All Rights Reserved

     

     

    Source: TODAY, singaporelawwatch.sg