Health Minister Chua Soi Lek's resignation after a sex scandal
has prompted a heated debate in Malaysia over laws pertaining to
sexual mores and privacy of individuals.
Chua resigned as minister and MP after two clandestinely shot DVDs
captured him in a sex romp with a woman in a hotel room. He has
said the woman was 'a personal friend' and has not pressed charges
against anybody.
Deputy Inspector General of Police Ismail Omar declined to say
whether Chua would be investigated for indulging in oral sex which,
under Section 377A of the Malaysian Penal Code, is described as
'carnal intercourse against the order of nature'.
The law that makes oral sex a criminal offence is obsolete and
should be repealed, said former Bar Council president Yeo Yang Poh.
He said it was hypocritical for Malaysian society to see oral sex
as an offence.
'Singapore has repealed the law and even before that a Singapore
judge who tried such a case also construed that oral sex is not an
offence if it is part of intercourse.
'The law should be repealed and if it is really enforced, I think
over 95 percent of Malaysians would be put in jail,' Yeoh said in
an interview to The Sun newspaper.
Political analyst Wong Chin Huat also described the legal
definition of oral sex as outdated.
'I do not think many Malaysians would want to see Chua penalised
for whatever he did with another consenting adult.
'It is time for us to do away with laws pertaining to 'unnatural
sex', and the state should not have a say in what people do in
their personal life,' he said.
Malaysia has stringent punishment for oral sex, which can lead to a
jail sentence of up to 20 years and also whipping.
Yeo also noted there was no law in Malaysia to protect people's
privacy, saying it was time for such legislation in keeping with
the times.
Wong added that Chua's case highlighted the need for a Data
Protection Act.
Illegal betting syndicates have refused to accept bets on the hotel
room number where Chua's DVDs were allegedly shot.
The New Straits Times said that the syndicates had been instructed
by their bosses not to accept the number 1301 after photographs of
the room, complete with its number, were printed on the front page
of several Chinese dailies.
