Where: Malaysia



What’s happening? Transgender rights activists in Malaysia celebrated last year when the court of appeal said a law criminalising cross-dressing was unconstitutional. Last week, that ruling was overturned by the country’s highest court.

The federal court’s decision means that it will continue to be illegal to “impersonate a woman” under the law. A recent Human Rights Watch report found that police use the law to justify harassment of Muslim trans women, including physical and sexual assault, extortion and violations of privacy.

Reactions: “This law criminalises trans women, and this and similar laws in Malaysia deprive trans women of fundamental human rights, including right to self determination, right to live with dignity, freedom of expression, freedom of movement, right to livelihood, among others,” says Thilaga Sulathireh from Malaysian trans rights group Justice for Sisters. “It sanctions violence towards trans women.”

The United Nations Human Rights Office for southeast Asia says the court decision was regretful. “We call on Malaysian authorities to uphold their international human rights obligations without discrimination,” says Matilda Bogner, regional representative of their southeast Asia office.

“Malaysian government leaders have sought to politicise this issue in the desperate style of a besieged bully looking to regain political popularity by picking on transgender people,” says Phil Robertson, Asia deputy director, Human Rights Watch. “But I think the government will find that despite the court decision, this entire campaign for legal rights has resulted in greater self-confidence of the transgender community to assert their rights, and that will not change.”

This campaign for legal rights has resulted in greater self-confidence of the transgender community Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch

Human rights in Malaysia: Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2015 report judged Malaysia to be “partly free”. It said: “The government increasingly targeted regime critics and those challenging conservative societal norms in 2014 … Malaysia’s LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community faces discrimination and hostility from both state and nonstate actors.”

Activists who speak out against the governing party (which has been in power since 1957) are targeted by the authorities under the Sedition Act. LGBT rights activist Nisha Ayub, who recently won a Human Rights Watch Award, was attacked last month.

“This ruling is one of a number of government actions that increasingly restrict Malaysian civil society groups and activists,” says Robertson. “Arbitrary restrictions on free expression and association that are based on how much the government likes or doesn’t like you is the new reality for Malaysian civil society.”

NGO Lawyers for Liberty says it has been “a terrible few weeks for human rights protection in the country” following another court ruling to limit freedom of assembly at protests.

At the time of publication, Malaysia’s ministry of foreign affairs had not responded to a request for comment on the ruling.

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