An international human rights group has slammed the government for continuing to persecute transgender women, following the arrest of 15 in Kota Bharu last week.
“Malaysian authorities need to stop hauling transgender people into court simply because of who they are and what they wear.
“The government needs to recognise that the freedom to express your gender is as fundamental as any other freedom,” said Neela Ghoshal, senior LGBT rights researcher at Human Rights Watch.
According to HRW, the group was charged the day after their arrest and nine of those detained were fined, while two received a one-month jail sentence "under a discriminatory law that prohibits a male person posing as a woman”.
"A lawyer filed an appeal and the two women sentenced to jail were released on bail pending the outcome," added the NGO.
"The raid is the latest incident in a pattern of arbitrary arrests and harassment of transgender women in Malaysia.
"Malaysian state governments should immediately abolish laws against cross-dressing and other discriminatory legislation against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people," it added.
According to Bernama last week, the raid on June 16 was part of an integrated operation at a hotel in Kota Bharu.
The 15 transgender women, aged between 20 and 35, were picked up at 10.45pm.
Kelantan Islamic Religious Affairs Department (JHEAIK) assistant director (Syariah law enforcement) Mohd Fadzuli Mohd Zain said the 15 was to be investigated under Section 7 of the Syariah Criminal Code 1985 for wearing women's attire and posing as women.
"Earlier, there were public complaints they were making a din during a birthday party at the hotel," he was reported saying.
Apart from JHEAIK, the police and the Kota Bharu Municipal Council were also involved in the raid.
'Protect them, not persecute'
Local gender rights activists say that the cross-dressing laws not only violate the Federal Constitution, but contribute to widespread discrimination and violence against transgender people.
“Laws against ‘a male person posing as a woman’ not only deny transgender women in Malaysia their fundamental rights as citizens of the country, they also contribute to a hostile environment,” HRW quoted Nisha Ayub, programme manager at local support group Seed Foundation, as saying.
“These laws lead people to perceive us as criminals and subject us to humiliation, hate crimes, and other forms of violence, and encourage hate crimes toward the community.”
Ghoshal ( photo ) added, "The Malaysian authorities should be protecting transgender people from discrimination, not perpetuating it.
“The Kelantan Islamic Department should immediately drop the charges against the nine women, and all state governments should repeal these discriminatory laws.”
Last November, the Court of Appeal dealt a landmark verdict ruling that criminalisation of cross dressing was unconstitutional and upheld the recognition of the rights of transgenders, in relation to the arrest of a group of transgender women in Negri Sembilan.
The court in the judgment said Islamic laws are subject to the provisions of the fundamental liberties of a person, as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.
However the plight of the transgender community may not be improving any time soon.
The Negri Sembilan government is appealing the verdict in the Federal Court.
In another case last week, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur dismissed an application from a 25-year-old transgender woman to compel the National Registration Department to change the gender on her IC as she had undergone a sex change operation.
