Protest prompted by public caning of two alleged lesbians
Kuala Lumpur – 31 July 2023
Eight members of Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light were arrested during a protest in Kuala Lumpur in solidarity with the LGBT+ community.
Their protest, outside the downtown Sogo shopping mall on Saturday (29 July), was prompted by the recent public caning of two alleged lesbians and other crackdowns on the LGBT+ community in Malaysia.
The Ahmadis were arrested and are being detained at Dang Wangi police headquarters.
They are being held incommunicado, with no access to lawyers or families.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEOS OF PROTEST AND ARREST
Hadil El-Khouly, the Human Rights Outreach Coordinator of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light UK said:
“They have been detained for over 24 hours for protesting in support of LGBT+ human rights. They are now awaiting a court order to charge them. During detention, they were interrogated by police about their religious beliefs.
“This protest was a response by believers from the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light to the persecution of the LGBTQ+ community by the Malaysian government, which has escalated recently. We do not support the oppression of LGBTQ+ people. Our doors are open to everyone.
We have many members of the LGBTQ+ community. Some of them have been jailed in Turkey, Iran and Egypt.”
London-based human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who has supported Malaysian human rights campaigns, and the rights of Ahmadi Muslims, for many decades, added:
“This is a laudable brave example of one persecuted minority supporting another. Ahmadis are an oppressed religious minority in Malaysia. Unlike mainstream Muslims, the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light accepts LGBT+ people and supports their human rights. What they did was very courageous. I fear they will pay a heavy price under Malaysia’s draconian anti-protest laws.”