PETALING JAYA: State religious authorities arrested a total of 135 people in connection with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) activities from 2022 to 2025, says religious affairs minister Zulkifli Hasan.
Zulkifli said enforcement for such criminal shariah cases, including sodomy and crossdressing, fell under the purview of the respective religious authorities.
“Anyone suspected of being involved in such activities, but without sufficient evidence (to incriminate them), are given advice, counselling or ordered to attend rehabilitative courses to learn about true Islamic teachings.
“The government has also held numerous special programmes and courses for these people to guide them in a more positive direction.
“Assistance is also channelled to help them enter better fields of work or into business,” he said in a written parliamentary reply.
He was responding to Rosol Wahid (PN-Hulu Terengganu) who asked about the number of arrests made over LGBT cases from 2022 to 2025, as well as the action taken against them.
Zulkifli maintained that the Madani government strongly rejected any form of promotion of LGBT-themed programmes or events, especially on social media, as it went against Islamic teachings.
He added that members of the public can file complaints to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission if they spot efforts to promote such activities online.
To a separate question from Siti Zailah Yusoff (PN-Rantau Panjang), the minister said the government lacked comprehensive data on the number of people who are part of the LGBT community in Malaysia.
Siti Zailah had asked for a breakdown of the statistics of the LGBT community, including their age range, ethnicity and nationality.
