[Brian Coleman, the Conservative spokesman on equalities on the Greater London Assembly Member, registered his protest at Mr Mahathir's remarks by tearing up his ticket for an event hosted by the Malaysian culture minister on Wednesday.

Mr Coleman said: "I am sickened and disgusted to hear this draconian rubbish coming from the prime minister of a sophisticated country such as Malaysia.

"The fact that any politician anywhere can still make comments like this is unnerving, but for a country so keen to promote itself as a tourist destination it is astounding in equal measure." - BBC UK]

The Guardian

Mahathir Dicela Kerana Mengada

(Malaysian PM rebuked for threat to UK gay ministers)

Oleh: Nicholas Watt

Britain mengeluarkan satu kenyataan mencela Mahathir, semalam, setelah perdana menteri itu mengugut mahu menolak ketibaan sebarang menteri British yang hidup secara 'gay' daripada melawat negara ini bersama teman-teman mereka.

Dalam satu kenyataan yang keras, Pejabat Luar British telah berkata: "JackStraw menganggap bahawa kisah peribadi seseorang itu harus dihormati." Kenyataan beliau itu dilihat sebagai menyokong Ben Bradwshaw menteri luar yang diketahui berfahaman gay dan dijangka berkemungkinan melawat Malaysia.

Sumber Jabatan luar bertegas, Mr.Bradshaw yang bertemu dengan Pesuruhjaya Tinggi Malaysia di London beberapa minggu sejurus perlantikannya Jun lalu, akan terus berurusan dengan Malaysia. Pertelagahan doplomatik itu meledak apabila Mahathir mengugut menghalau menteri-menteri British seandanya mereka "melawat negara ini bersama teman mereka." Dalam satu wawancara program "Today" kelolaan Radio 4, Mahathir yang pernah memenjarakan bekas timbalannya berasaskan tuduhan palsu kerana sodo** dan korupsi, berkata bahawa tingkah-laku homoseksual tidak boleh diterima di negara Islam seperti Malaysia. (tetapi memfitnah dan berbohong, dan mencuri wang rakyat boleh - penterjemah)

"Rakyat British boleh menerima seorang menteri begitu tetapi kalau merka tiba di sini dan membawa teman mereka bersama, kita akan halau mereka keluar," kata beliau.

Peter Thatchell, seorang aktivis gay, berkata kenyataan perdana menteri itu tidak mengejutkan memandangkan rekod hak asasi Malaysia yang sungguh haprak. "Di Malaysia, satu hubungan gay yang bertaraf suka sama suka boleh dihukum penjara selama 20 tahun dan sebat dan ini merupakan salah satu hukuman yang paling berat di dunia ini, menyangkuti kisah hubungan gay, " kata beliau.

Mr. Thatchell memberi amaran betapa kenyataan Mahathir itu menunjukkan sifat beeberapa negara yang terbabit dengan pakatan sejagat memerangi keganasan. Segelintir sekutu Britian adalah bersifat "tidak stabil, dan ramai yang tidak boleh dipercayai."

"Nampaknya perdana menteri Malaysia itu cuba menunjuk-ajar kerajaan kita siapa yang patut dihantar sebagai wakilnya untuk berurusan dengan mereka," kata Thatchell.

Para penyokong Anwar Ibrahim telah menolak segala tuduhan yang ditohmahkan terhadapnya, dengan bertegas dia dipenjarakan setelah dia menunjukkan keberanian mencabar perdana menteri. Namun, Mahathir mendakwa hukuman undang-undang perlu dipatuhi.

"Kita tidak boleh mempunyai soerang timbalan perdana menteri yang berkelakuan begitu, dalam negara ini," kata beliau. "Kerana itu kami bertindak. Di dalam negara ini seorang yang homoseks tidak boleh diterima menjadi perdana meneri."

Malaysia telah mengutuk srangan Septermber 11 keatas Washington dan New York. Tetapi Mahathir yang kini diasak dengan hebatnya oleh parti Islam yang membangkang, enggan menyokong tindakan mengebom Afghanistan.

'Kami tidak percaya menyerang Afghanistan itu akan menyelesaikan masalah. Kalaulah kami dilihat memberikan sokongan kepada Amerika secara berterusan, kami akan kehilangan sokongan, daripada rakyat negara sendiri. Mereka (Amerika) mesti mencari sebab kepada masalah itu. Orang tidak mengorbankan diri mereka secara bersahaja. Tentu ada yang mereka perjuangkan."

Tamat.

Terjemahan: SPAR

Asal:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/ story/0,3605,585196,00.html

Malaysian PM rebuked for threat to UK gay ministers

Nicholas Watt, political correspondent

Friday November 2, 2001, The Guardian

Britain issued a rebuke last night to the veteran Malaysian prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, after he threatened to expel gay British ministers if they visited his country with their partners.

In a terse statement, the Foreign Office said: "Jack Straw strongly considers that people's private lives are private." His remarks were seen as support for Ben Bradshaw, the openly gay Foreign Office minister, whose portfolio includes Malaysia.

Foreign Office sources insisted that Mr Bradshaw, who met the Malaysian high commissioner to London within weeks of his appointment in June, would continue to cover the country.

The diplomatic spat flared up after Dr Mohamad threatened to throw out gay British ministers if they "come here bringing their boyfriend". In an interview with Radio 4's Today programme Dr Mohamad, who had his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, jailed on charges of sodomy and corruption, said that homosexuality was unacceptable in his predominantly Muslim country.

"The British people accept homosexual ministers but if they ever come here bringing their boyfriend along, we will throw them out," he said.

Peter Tatchell, the gay rights activist, said his comments were not surprising in the light of Malaysia's poor human rights record. "In Malaysia, a consenting gay relationship is punishable by up to 20 years jail plus flogging and this is probably one of the harshest penalties for gay relations anywhere in the world," he said.

Mr Tatchell warned that the prime minister's remarks showed the nature of some of the countries involved in the international coalition against terrorism. Some of Britain's "allies" were "very unstable, very unreliable friends.

"It does appear that the Malaysian prime minister does appear to be dictating to our government who it should send as its representatives," he said.

Supporters of Mr Ibrahim rejected the charges against him, insisting that he was imprisoned after he dared to challenge the prime minister's authority. Dr Mohamad claimed that the due process of law had been followed.

"We can't have a deputy who is homosexual, not in this country," he said. "So we had to take action. In this country a homosexual is not acceptable as the prime minister."

Malaysia has condemned the September 11 attacks on Washington and New York. But Dr Mohamad, who is under pressure from opposition Islamist parties, is refusing to support the bombing of Afghanistan.