Violence, Culture and Conflict: Strategies for Safety in a Time of AIDS In Malaysia 25 July th International AIDS Conference

Legal system in Malaysia Federal Constitution Highest law of the land Civil laws Administered at the federal level (criminal laws ) Section 21 of the minor offences act Public indecency law Syariah laws Administered at the state level(family laws) Male person posing as woman Female person posing man

Syariah laws 1. Kedah 2. Kelantan 3. Negeri Sembilan Any male person who, in any public place, wears a woman’s attire and poses as a woman shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be liable to a fine not exceeding (x) ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding (x) or to both. 1. Johor 2. Malacca 3. Pahang4. Perak 5. Perlis 6. Pulau Pinang 7. Sabah8. Sarawak 9. Selangor10. Terengganu 11. Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur (Federal Territory) Any male person who, in any public place, wears a woman’s attire and poses as a woman for immoral purposes shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be liable to a fine not exceeding (x)ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding (x) or to both.

StateLawFineImprisonment Negeri SembilanSection 66. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months KedahSection 7. Pondan≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months KelantanSection 7. Pondan≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months MalaccaSection 72. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months SabahSection 92. Male person posing as woman, or vice versa ≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months SelangorSection 30. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 6 months PenangSection 28. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year TerengganuSection 33. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year JohorSection 28. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year PerakSection 55. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year SarawakSection 25. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year PahangSection 33. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year PahangSection 34. Female person posing as man≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year Federal TerritorySection 28. Male person posing as woman≤ RM 1,000 (≈334 AUD)≤ 1 year PerlisSection 7. Pondan≤ RM 5,000 (≈1,671 AUD)≤ 3 years PerlisSection 7. Pondan (female person posing as men) ≤ RM 5,000 (≈1,671 AUD)≤ 3 years

Impact of the law

Why is the identification card an issue? Last odd numbers for male Gender as male being stated on the bottom of the id Name is male name

Aleesha Farhana made an application to change her gender status at the High Court on May 25 to enable her to be accepted into the local university to continue her studies, apart from the difficulty of living as a woman with her male status

Street Signboard in the public to remind about the Syariah law against Transwoman

Politician giving lgbT hate remarks in the mainstream media Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim came under fire from human rights NGO Suaram today for their direct attacks against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals, which it said will promote discrimination against the LGBT community. "The statements have certainly sent out a clear message that approves and justifies homophobic and transphobic violence, abuse and harassment against LGBTs by society," the group said in a statement. "It must be made clear that LGBTs are not asking for any new or special rights. They are simply asking the government to live up to its promises and obligations on recognising equality and non-discrimination for all human beings." Suaram was referring to Anwar's July 18 testimony in court in his suit against Malay daily Utusan Malaysia. Anwar said laws that discriminated homosexuals were needed in order to protect the sanctity of heterosexual marriages, but argued that such archaic laws must be reviewed to prevent the innocent from being penalised. 'The enemies of Is lam' The next day Najib said in a speech that the "LGBT community, along with liberalism and pluralism, are the enemies of Islam".

Constitutional review End of 2010, filed the constitutional review 11 th October 2012 – unfavourable decision from the Negeri Sembilan High Court 2012 – filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal in Putrajaya May and July hearing At the end of 2010, a group of transwomen filed a constitutional review of the Negeri Sembilan syariah law that prohibits ‘male person from posing as a woman’ following arbitrary and violent raids and arrests

Decision at the Negeri Sembilan High Court  Applicants are born male and to this date are still male although they have undergone surgery to enhance their appearance  Applicants are Muslims, and thus must abide by the state syariah laws  When transsexuals wear female attire, although biologically they are male and have male sexual organs and desire, they will engage in homosexual relationships, which is a cause of HIV  The human rights provisions in the Federal Constitution are not absolute rights and can be disregarded  Article 8(2) that prohibits gender discrimination, covers men and women, not gender identity as claimed by the applicants. Gender refers to the sex that one is born with, male or female and it is stated in the birth certificate. Although they have changed physically and emotionally, it does not change the fact that the applicants are male as stated in their birth certificate and identification card.

Thank you NISHA AYUB facebook I am you: be a trans ally website mytransally.weebly.com