Two women who pleaded guilty to attempting
same-sex relations were given six strokes of the cane at the sharia
high court of north-eastern state Terengganu in Malaysia on Monday.
The punishment took place behind closed doors in the courtroom after
the judge handed down the sentence with close to 150 witnesses
present.
The unidentified women, aged 22 and 23, were fined 3,300 ringgit (806
dollars) in addition to the six strokes of the cane.
The caning, originally scheduled for August 28, was postponed to
Monday due to technical reasons.
"The power of the court has been enacted in [the] Terengganu state
constitution ... Sharia laws allow for women to be punished, they are
just being educated and not tortured," the chief registrar of the
court, Wan Abdul Malik Wan Sidek, told dpa in a text reply as he
defended the public caning.
Thilaga Sulathireh, from the group Justice for Sisters who witnessed
the ordeal, was concerned about the safety, privacy, harassment,
humiliation and trauma of the women.
"There's a disparity and gap between Muslim and non-Muslim women,"
Thilaga said to dpa over the phone.
"We are very concerned on how a lot of the punishment is carried out
in the name of religion.
Torture is torture.
"What happened today was definitely quite shocking.
"It really is a sign of how human rights are regressing in Malaysia
not only for LGBT but for all people."
Muslims make up approximately 60 per cent of Malaysia's population of
32 million.