bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

The Star

Two foreign men were each fined 5,000 ringgit (US$1,200) by a court in Malaysia after pleading guilty to wearing indecent clothes during a controversial running event.
Satyanarayana Prasad Papoli, 70, and Arthur Wang, 66, pleaded guilty after the charges were read to them before Magistrate Nurkhalida Farhana Abu Bakar on Monday.
The charges were read in Mandarin to Wang, of Taiwan, and in English to Satyanarayana, from India.
According to the charge sheets, both men were accused of committing an obscene act that caused disturbance to others in a public place by wearing indecent clothing.
The act was committed near a hotel in Jalan Utama Jalan Desaru, Pengerang, between 4pm and 6pm on Friday.


Public indecency is an offence under Section 294 of Malaysia’s Penal Code, which carries a punishment upon conviction of imprisonment for up to three months or a fine, or both.
The case was prosecuted by Johor state prosecution director Abdul Ghafar Ab Latif and deputy public prosecutors Ahmad Khairuddin Khalid and Foo Fang Leong, while both accused were not represented.
During the proceeding, Abdul Ghafar requested a heavier penalty as the offence had caused public grievances.
He also said the penalty should serve as a lesson to both visitors and locals to adhere to norms in the country.
In his defence, Wang, who is unemployed, said he was unfamiliar with Malaysian norms and he had no intention to cause a public grievance.
I would like to apologise to the people of this country and Malaysians in general
Arthur Wang, 66-year-old Taiwanese
“For the past 10 years, I have been promoting the aboriginal culture of Orchid Island in Taiwan. Had I known that the clothing [would be regarded as] indecent [here], I would not have worn it.
“I would like to apologise to the people of this country and Malaysians in general, and I promise that I will not repeat this mistake,” he said, adding that he is also unemployed.
Meanwhile, Satyanarayana said it was not unusual for men to wear women’s clothing during hash events.
“I came here with the pure intention of doing charity. However, I admit my mistake of wearing women’s clothing,” he said, adding that he is a former lawyer and suffers from heart disease.

The court then fined each man 5,000 ringgit in default of one month’s jail. Both accused paid the fine.
Earlier, Johor police chief M. Kumar had said police arrested three men, including two foreigners, for committing indecent behaviour during a controversial running event in Kota Tinggi.
The three suspects aged 39 to 70 were arrested at a hotel in Kota Tinggi at around 10pm on Saturday.
“Their arrest is to help with the investigation of their involvement in carrying out indecent behaviour, including public exposure, during the running event,” he said.
“Police also seized several accessories from the suspects including a red sari, a red skirt, three silver coloured pieces of cardboard with a fake spear shaft.”
On Saturday, Johor’s chief minister Onn Hafiz Ghazi said the state government would investigate the controversial running event after concerns were raised over participants’ inappropriate clothing.
He stressed that the event, which sparked outrage on social media, was not organised by the state government or any of its agencies.
This story was first published by The Star


North Korea beckons Chinese tourists with beach resort in 2026 calendar

Malaysian police accused of unlawfully barring 2 women from station over dress code

For the Global South, Chinese AI principles resonate deeply

Curbs on children’s social media use and screen time must strike a balance

Malaysia

Foreign men fined for wearing women’s clothing in Malaysia

A man wearing a red dress poses for a photo before a hash event in Beijing in 2013. One of the accused said in his defence that it was not unusual for men to wear women’s clothing during hash events. Photo: Reuters 

Members of Hong Kong’s Ladies Hash House Harriers team perform a cancan in red dresses during a hash event in 1994 to raise money for charity. Photo: SCMP Pictures

GISB: unmasking the shadowy sect behind Malaysia’s worst child sex abuse scandal

More than 500 children have been rescued from care homes linked to GISB in Malaysia. Photo: Facebook/GISB

Global Ikhwan Services and Business (GISB) headquarters in Rawang, Malaysia. Photo: Reuters

Children pictured at a GISB event. More than 500 children have been rescued from care homes in Malaysia linked to  the group. Photo: Facebook/GISB

Three GISB members are escorted by police after facing charges at a court in Seremban, Malaysia, on September 19. Photo: EPA-EFE

Malaysian Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain speaks in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. Photo: AP

Ashaari Mohammad, founder of the banned Al-Arqam sect, pictured in 1996. Photo: Reuters

The logo of Global Ikhwan Services and Business (GISB) on the side of an office building in Rawang. Photo: AFP

GISB CEO Nasiruddin Mohd Ali. He admitted on September 14 that “one or two cases of sodomy” had occurred. Photo: Facebook/GISB

On Facebook, GISB has shared its ambitious plans for a future development surrounding its Rawang headquarters. Photo: Facebook/GISB

A man linked to GISB covers his face as he is escorted by police officers after being charged in court in Putrajaya on September 18. Photo: Reuters

The children rescued from care homes linked to GISB ranged from ages 1 to 17. Photo: Facebook/GISB

A Malaysian man pictured with his multiple wives in Putrajaya. Polygamy is permitted under Malaysia’s sharia codes. Photo: AFP

Sabrina Bolivar, the daughter of a former Al-Arqam leader, shares the story of her mother’s experience with the group. Photo: TikTok/sabbybolivar

False claims of Chinese crime wave in Japan ignite outrage after boy’s stabbing

Flowers are seen in front of Shenzhen Japanese School following the death of a 10-year-old boy who was fatally stabbed on his way to the school last month. Photo: Kyodo

A screenshot of the post on X by user MR.486 that claims 60 per cent of all crimes in Japan are committed by Chinese nationals. Photo: X/@kiss486 

Japan Airlines says it has cancelled plans to hold a commemorative event at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to mark 50 years of flights to China. Photo: AFP

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi meet in New York last month. Photo: Xinhua

Security personnel keep watch outside Shenzhen Japanese School following the death of a 10-year-old boy who was stabbed last month on his way to the school. Photo: Reuters

Malaysia’s conservatives urge boycott of Coldplay concert amid event organiser’s pride flag ban

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Chris Martin of Coldplay performs onstage at Rose Bowl Stadium on September 30, 2023 in Pasadena, California.   Monica Schipper/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Monica Schipper / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

The rainbow flag at #WomensMarchMY in conjunction with International Women’s Day 2019. Coldplay concert organiser Live Nation Malaysia specified that banners carrying political and pride content are not allowed to be brought into the concert venue in Kuala Lumpur on November 22. Photo: Shutterstock

Coldplay’s Chris Martin performs at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California, in September. Photo: AFP

Indonesian policemen try to disperse conservative Muslim activists protesting against LGBTQ support near a stadium where Coldplay performed in Jakarta. Photo: EPA-EFE

Malaysian state’s gay ‘rehab’ centre plan ‘amounts to torture’, LGBTQ activists say

The rainbow flag at #WomensMarchMY in Malaysia in 2019. Homosexuality is frowned upon in Malaysian society, with more than 82 per cent of the population against same-sex marriage. Photo: Shutterstock

A worshipper at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur. The constitution grants each of Malaysia’s 13 states the power to prosecute Muslims who breach religious offences, with same-sex relations being one of them. Photo: AP

Protesters urge the government to recognise the LGBTQ community at a 2011 rally outside a mosque in Shah Alam near Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AFP

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

Satyanarayana Prasad Papoli, 70, and Arthur Wang, 66, pleaded guilty to committing an obscene act that caused disturbance to others


Satyanarayana Prasad Papoli, 70, and Arthur Wang, 66, pleaded guilty to committing an obscene act that caused disturbance to others.


Foreign men fined for wearing women’s clothing in Malaysia

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Satyanarayana Prasad Papoli, 70, and Arthur Wang, 66, pleaded guilty to committing an obscene act that caused disturbance to others

Satyanarayana Prasad Papoli, 70, and Arthur Wang, 66, pleaded guilty to committing an obscene act that caused disturbance to others