Singaporeans, especially those who LOOK no different from a Malaysian, should be careful when they travel up north from now on. For that matter, which Singaporean Chinese, Indian or Malay doesn't look like a Malaysian? Many Singaporeans have friends and relatives in Malaysia. For all intents and purposes, we look and speak like Malaysians.Why the need to be careful? Not because you'd get car-jacked while enjoying your meals in Johor Bahru, though that is likely to happen, but that you'd get arrested for behaving indecently. What indecent behaviour, you ask. Well, for one you'd need to keep a mile away from
(for men): any woman, whether that woman is your grandmother, mother, sister, girlfriend, maid or wife, and
(for women): any man, whether that man is your grandfather, father, brother, boyfriend or husband.
According to a report in Today (7 April 2006), Malaysia's Chief Justice, Justice Ahmad Fairuz Abdul Halim has given the city councils permission to enact and enforce morality by-laws. No act of Parliament is necessary here, so long as that person who enacts those by-laws follow Muslim laws and are eager to curb indecent behaviour. What is indecent behaviour in this context? Well, for one, kissing in public is. Don't even try a peck on the cheek and it doesn't matter if you are kissing your mother. You can still be arrested until you can established that that women is in fact your mother. What else is considered indecent? Well, it's hard to say, really. It depends on these people's sense of morality, so its better you pretend not to know the person beside you, even if that person is your grandmother, your wife, your sister, or your...
When fanatics and extremists do these things, you don't worry too much, because that's how they behave and they form the minority. But when no less than the Chief Justice of the land is saying yes to these morality squads who tend to come from mainstream society, you begin to wonder what will become of your planned holidays to Malaysia later this year, not to mention the reputation of the country.
Image source: http://www.marinemammalcenter.org/
