Malaysia’s religious tilt drives mixed-faith couples overseas to find ‘somewhere more accepting’

Name: A multiracial Malaysia would be unconstitutional, says former PM Mahathir
Uploaded: 2023-07-16T01:30:15.000Z
Duration: 2 min 22 s
Description: A multiracial Malaysia would be unconstitutional, says former PM Mahathir

Threats by conservatives towards a newly engaged lesbian ex-lawmaker highlights how a resurgent religious lobby is shifting Malaysia away from personal freedoms

Voters hoped PM Anwar Ibrahim would halt the spread of religious conservatism, yet critics say he continues to pander to politicians close to the Malay-Muslim base

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Malaysia does not recognise civil marriages between Muslims and non-Muslims. Photo: Shutterstock

Hadi Azmi

Published: 9:30am, 16 Jul 2023Updated: 3:18pm, 16 Jul 2023

“We said yes!” former lawmaker Yap Soo Huey enthused last month in a joyous Facebook post announcing her engagement in Penang to her Atlanta-based partner – one of a growing number of Malaysians living overseas to enjoy same-sex relationships far from the disapproving glare of the nation’s conservatives.

Malaysia, which has a multiethnic population with a Muslim majority, does not recognise same-sex marriages, and maintains a colonial-era law prohibiting consensual gay sex. Like neighbouring Muslim-majority nations Indonesia and Brunei, Malaysia also does not recognise civil marriages between Muslims and non-Muslims.

This presents couples with a difficult choice: convert, live incognito, break up, or leave the country to stay together.

Former Malaysian lawmaker Yap Soo Huey (right) celebrates her engagement to her Atlanta-based partner. Photo: Facebook/Dr Faiz Na’aman

Yap, a former state representative for the Pulau Tikus constituency in Penang, left Malaysia for the United States in 2018 after her term of office ended.

Still, her post has attracted attention as Malaysia prepares for state polls, with the Penang state government’s Islamic authorities threatening legal action against the couple, and saying the law does not condone “LGBT activities” even though the body has no jurisdiction over non-Muslims and non-citizens.

“If it indeed happened, actions will be taken under relevant laws,” its chairman Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman said.

In response, the Democratic Action Party women’s wing chief Chong Eng issued a statement saying Yap was “an ordinary person with her own decisions” who left the country some time ago.

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A multiracial Malaysia would be unconstitutional, says former PM Mahathir