My Views on Seksualiti Merdeka

“Malaysia: Ban On Sexuality Rights Festival Violates Human Rights”

This is the latest entry posted as late as today (November 10^th 2011) at the http://www.seksualitimerdeka.org/

Below is an excerpt of the report:

IGLHRC protesting in Vatican City

 

[ (New York, November 9, 2011) Today, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) sent a letter to the government of Malaysia condemning the November 3rd police ban of all events related to Seksualiti Merdeka, an annual arts and performance showcase dedicated to the rights to identity and self-determination out of alleged concern for public order.

"The police rationalized the shutdown of Seksualiti Merdeka as a preemptive move against possible altercation by conservative groups misusing religion to vilify people who do not conform to their expectations of acceptable sexual orientation and gender identity," said Grace Poore, Regional Coordinator for Asia and the Pacific Islands at the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC).]
 
Oh my. Now the moral police is talking. Hi America. Don’t you have any Muslim militant to kill now?
This is exactly how I predicted things to turn out. Don’t we realize that this is just a cat and mouse race? Now our government is a target of international insults and slanders just because we have our own sensitivity that they are trespassing into.

And below are among Muslim parties which support Seksualiti Merdeka organization:
 
Sisters In Islam

...sama sekali tidak bersetuju dengan pengharaman Seksualiti Merdeka. Kami melihat ini sebagai satu lagi jenis halangan kepada kebebasan bersuara, berkumpulan dan kebebasan idea di Malaysia... (November 3, 2011)

Ahmad Fuad Rahmat, Islamic Rennaisance Front
 ...kita hidup dalam masyarakat majmuk yang pelbagai. Untuk sesuatu masyarakat itu maju, ia haruslah bersifat menerima. Tidak harus wujud diskriminasi terhadap jantina atau orientasi seksual, tanpa mengira bangsa dan agama... (November 3, 2011)
 
Seriously, Sisters (aka Nuns) in Islam? And that’s a joke right, Islamic Renaissance Front?
 
Now, ladies and gentlemen, why should we care for this issue?
 
1. This is a trap for Malaysian society.

This is another provocation to stir the tranquility in Malaysia. Another reason for international human rights organizations to paint the bad picture of us. Before this, people didn’t even care whether gay or lesbian or transgender live among the society. True, we may not be celebratory to them, but they were never denied the rights to live. Malaysians were polite enough to them.

They’ve got to do their own favourite jobs (mak andam, make-up artist, tailors, prostitutes, chefs, photographers, interior designers, wedding planners, hairdressers, fashion designers). If that is called violating human rights, then apparently we have no hope in mankind. Never have I heard gays being beaten to death in Malaysia. Unlike the Americans – wait, what? Yes, gays are being shot to death in the most tolerant country in the world. Check these links out: 

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/26/larry-king-murder-trial-c_n_937857.html
http://unfinishedlivesblog.com/2011/07/10/4-year-old-boy-shot-to-death-suspected-of-being-gay/
http://history.verdeserve.com/the-first-openly-gay-elected-official-in-the-us-was-shot-to-death/
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/23/us/23oxnard.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_violence_against_LGBT_people_in_the_United_States



Lawrence King, who was killed because he’s a gay. Picture taken in December 2006
 

2. Do they really want this to happen, seriously, do they?

While this might be a good platform for people to understand the LGBT minority, do you think they really need this kind of publicity? To be frank, I think the gay community themselves are living peacefully among the majority society, and their anonymity is guaranteed as long as they don’t expose themselves and forcing people to accept them.

For all this while, they are living under the radar, where they feel secured without discrimination. And when Seksualiti Merdeka (and Azwan Ismail, the saya-gay-saya-OK guy) exists, it gave them unnecessary attention and spotlight, as if enforcing them to come out of the closet, when they really are comfortably living among the society. Because of Seksualiti Merdeka, their state of peace are threatened, people started to be discriminative, judgmental and critical towards them.

Here in Malaysia, we already have that code of secrecy. “Don’t ask, don’t tell”. Aren’t this what Americans practicing right now? Even if we already know that that particular guy or girl is homosexual, we still respect them just the way they are if they don’t showcase their traits publicly. This makes the person-in-question’s privacy is protected. Really, they don’t need this kind of attention. They are living perfectly well in Malaysia. It is not publicity that they need; it is the freedom to practice their own lifestyle that they want. And they already have it. So what’s more the Seksualiti Merdeka has to offer?

After all, Seksualiti Merdeka is only a minority of the minority, who claims that they are doing this for the majority of minority. Who are they anyway to represent the whole LGBT community? What if the LGBT community themselves disagree with their approach? I believe they are only fighting for their own importance, not the majority of LGBT community.

Now which human right did we violate? Seksualiti Merdeka is, in fact, violating the rights for the LGBT to stay anonymous.

3. Freedom of speech should be given a definition according to Malaysia’s context

Thailand’s transsexual pageant contestors

 

True, we might not be as open as other countries, like Thailand or the Philippines, but this is what supposed to be practiced in Malaysia. The USA claimed that they are open minded, but why couldn’t they open their mind on the diversity of culture? This is contradictory to their own stand. For one, we are Easterners, where people live accordingly to their customs.

Second, we are mostly religious people (though not everyone is pious). These are the factors shaping our moral and social structure. It is very rude for the Westerners to impose their own ideology of what is right and what is wrong to be adapted to our society. Suddenly they published story, telling the world that we are not as good, as open, as tolerant like them. When in truth, we have our own way in being tolerant to the minority. Being tolerant does not, I repeat, does NOT necessarily mean you have to change the law to let gays and lesbians marry each other. Can’t they accept that this thing is a taboo in our society? It is as simple as culture differences, no further stretch than that.

4. To let peace prevails, some sacrifices have to be done

I’m not surprised that if we accept this kind of liberty to exist herein, in the future there would emerge some groups claiming more rights to the marginal minority, of which the government have to address. Maybe then some more people will claim their rights as infidels (murtad), to perform incest (sumbang mahram), or to cohabitate (bersekedudukan). They would bring upon the same argument, that those are their freedom of speech. What would we say then?

The Sun, 23rd March 2011.

5. The need to wisely approach the target audience

I can, to some extent, understand the ‘noble’ cause of the organizers. It might become handy to help people with conflicting sexualities, discriminated (though it is very rare to find in Malaysia, unless you include those Muslim women who were denied jobs opportunities for wearing hijab), those that are unable to share their problems regarding their own sexuality. They can give counseling, form support group and whatnots.

But they must also respect the majority in giving aid to the minority. If not, it would only cause chaos and pointless aggravations. There are many more ways in approaching their target groups. I believe that the organizers, as Malaysians, understand that we have our own collective sensitivities.

It is perhaps, not wise to try their sensitivity by publicizing an event of which only little will benefit. The organizers have many more alternatives of which they can choose from.
 
6. The government should start addressing the existence of the matter, not denying it

This is the most important point of my arguments. The government knows that these people exist, but they do nothing about it. They cannot assume that every child attending school in Malaysia will turn out as heterosexual as they graduate. The government should implement policies, not to support these people, but as a preemptive strike to prevent such organizations to cause public uproar in the future.

I remember a quote from a newspaper that I read about LGBT. It sounds like this: Because we deny their existence, we also deny the solution.

If the government starts the initiative, then there are no needs for such group to exist in the future.
The government of Terengganu, as an example, through Jabatan Pelajaran Terengganu tried to put those 66 gay-potential kids in camp as a corrective measure to stop them from being gay or transsexual.

The camp was filled with motivational talks, religious sermons and tough physical activities. But this unfortunately opposed by many as being discriminatory (including our motherly Woman Minister, Shahrizat Jalil), and they have to cancel out the program. For me, I believe that such action is appropriate, but in-depth studies should be conducted before any implementation.

I believe that the government has many options to help this minority, and not stopping others who claimed they want to help. For a start, they can organize religion classes, encouraging students to participate in sports, come out with a specific department to address these minorities.

But they also have to make sure that their approach is not too imposing. They cannot simply terrifying those kids with warning of hell, or being stoned to death. But they must persuasively advise the kids of why such feelings are a testament of God and that they have to fight the instinct because it’s only a worldly desire (from a Muslim’s point of view).

This way, we can also prevent the bad talking from those shameless Americans that continuously being pricky and bossy to us, and also stop them from stuffing their noses into our borders.

THE MISCONCEPTIONS THAT WE SHOULD AVOID

 
1. Seksualiti Merdeka is a free sex festival

Even though they are promoting a wrong sexual lifestyle, they are not in any ways a sex festival like orgy, group sex, or even ‘pesta buih’. They only held talks and seminars etc. But either way, they are equally wrong.

2. Gays are worse than animal, because ALL animals are heterosexual

Ray and Silo. A couple of gay penguins

This is a very serious misconception. Unless there’s Quran verse or hadith supporting this claim, please consider this as wrong. For your information, many animals display homosexual (gay and lesbian) characteristics. 

This is, unfortunately, not taught in our classroom since this is politically incorrect. And also, because scientists thought that it’s very controversial to be considered as a theory. Unless you want people to call you ignorant or stupid, don’t try to bring this up in you arguments against gay. 

Please refer to these links below for enlightenment:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexual_behavior_in_animals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animals_displaying_homosexual_behavior
http://www.news-medical.net/news/2006/10/23/20718.aspx
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/07/0722_040722_gayanimal.html

And for more understanding, just Google “Homosexuality in animals”.

Perhaps, the most popular story of ‘animal gay’ is one of Ray’s and Silo’s, penguins of  New York’s Central Park Zoo. They successfully hatched and raised an egg after the original parents of it had difficulties to do so. Their story is even written into a book, entitled ‘And Tango Makes Three’. 

Tango is the name of their ‘kid’. And what is surprising even more, Ray and Silo even had sex with each other. Oh, and don’t ask me how. I don’t know.

 

Gay penguins family!

3. Being judgmental to them

We are not God. We did many bad things in life. Don’t threat them with hellfire; we are never guaranteed heaven. Just advise them, be compassionate.

4. Being gay is a CHOICE
How do you know? Were you born a gay? We might not understand how they truly feel because we are different. We can say they are gross, disgusting and stuffs, but it is not their choice at the first place. It’s what God made them to, it’s a fate. 

They were born with it. Pity them, but don’t hate them. Try to put yourself in their shoes. What if you were born a gay? Will you consider yourself as ‘jijik’?

CONCLUSION

I conclude my arguments of this issue with an honest reminder. However inappropriate Seksualiti Merdeka is, we should not give them opportunities to slander us more. Like calling them names, threat to kill them. It would only give them chances to promote their cause at international level, playing the victim card. It would only validate their claim that they are being discriminated against in this society.

As Muslims, we are expected to show a good example of educating and advising. So what we must do, we have to give solid arguments of why such groups should not be permitted in this country. Be gentle, but firm. And if they are to exist, they should play safe along the sidewalk, not causing too much stir by being apathetic to the Muslims majority. And don’t ever let our sensitivities to be toyed around by whoever claims to support human rights.

We are better than that.