Wearing a Swatch Pride watch in Malaysia carries a jail term
All Swatch products containing LGBTQ elements are banned in Malaysia and people found with them now faces up to three years in jail.
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Malaysia's government said on Thursday that anyone found wearing a product of the Swiss watchmaker Swatch’s Pride Collection could be jailed for up to three years.
All Swatch products containing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer elements are banned in Malaysia and those found with them now face up to three years in jail or a fine of up to 20,000 ringgit (CHF3,828).
The ban has been published in the Federal Gazette as part of a law that includes distribution and possession. The Home Ministry statement said the products are “detrimental, or possibly detrimental, to morality, public interest and national interest by promoting, supporting and normalising the LGBTQ movement which is not accepted by the general public.”
“Without a doubt, the seized watches did not and are not in any way capable of causing any disruption to public order or morality or any violations of the law,” Swatch said in the lawsuit.
Malaysia, which is predominantly Muslim, already criminalises same-sex relationships, with punishments ranging from caning under Islamic laws to 20 years in prison for sodomy under colonial-era civil laws. Last year, 18 people were detained at a Halloween party attended by members of the LGBTQ community.
Swatch is not the first international entity to fall foul of the Malaysian government. Last July, authorities cut short a music festival in Kuala Lumpur after the lead singer of British band The 1975 kissed a male bandmate during their performance in protest of the country’s anti-gay laws.
The footage of the kiss was posted on social media, leading Malaysia to blacklist the group.
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