Time to repeal Section 377
MALAYSIANS embraced change on May 9. We marched boldly into a new Malaysia that promises to be better for all. Shackles would be removed. Freedom would be restored. Laws that are oppressive and unfair would be reviewed, the new administration assures.
On that note, I wish to remind all Malaysians and especially our new administration of one particularly oppressive and unfair law, a law that our respected Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim would be all too familiar with – Section 377A and 377B of the Penal Code.
Section 377 of the Penal Code is a leftover from the British Empire. It dates all the way back to 1533 when King Henry VIII instituted the predecessor of this law which enabled anyone convicted under it to have their possessions confiscated by the state. It was further used to execute monks and nuns and to confiscate their land.
In the Commonwealth, which we are part of, Section 377 dates back to 1860 when it was implemented in India by the British colonial authorities. It was further introduced into other British colonies including Malaya.
While Anwar might be the most famous person to be charged under this law here, it has been used numerous times. Section 377B has been used in 171 cases from 2010 to 2014.
Some may have the misconception that Section 377A and 377B apply only to homosexual acts, when in reality it applies to heterosexual acts as well. The law was meant to outlaw any sexual acts that were not exclusively for the purpose of having children. With this in mind, is the punishment (20 years’ jail and whipping) considered something just and fair?
Anwar was quoted in 2012 as saying that “this law is archaic and could be used to promote intolerance, invade people’s privacy and punish them too harshly.”
Theresa May, the current British prime minister, was quoted last month as saying, “I am all too aware that these laws were often put in place by my own country. They were wrong then, and they are wrong now.”
Even religious groups have begun to realise how oppressive and unjust this law is. In India, the National Council of Churches, which represents millions of Christians, has campaigned against Section 377, calling it “legal codes of fascism”.
Malaysians, we have achieved many great things in these past few days. We’ve shown that we’re able to change the third longest-serving administration in the world. We’ve proven that even age is not an issue as we welcomed the most senior prime minister in the world.
It is now time for us, Malaysians, to move forward and show the world that oppression and injustice are things of the past. It is time for us to realise that a better Malaysia is within our reach.
As we welcome Anwar’s release and put the past behind, let us also relegate this oppressive and unjust law to the past so that no Malaysian will ever be harmed by it again.
Repeal 377A and 377B. It is time now, Malaysia. It is time.
CHRIS RAYAN Kajang