Some 1,000 to 3,000 people – according to various media reports – are said to have turned up last Saturday afternoon at the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) campus just outside of Kuala Lumpur to protest "free sex and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) practices," to quote the Malaysian New Straits Times.
The independent Malaysiakini news website which put the number at 1,000 reported:
The rally, organised by Jaringan Melayu Malaysia [JMM, or Coalition of Malaysian Malays] and joined by several other groups such as the pro-establishment student group Aspirasi Mahasiswa, has singled out several politicians, activists and organisations to bear the brunt of their criticism for supporting free sex and LGBT.
"Reject Free Sex, Reject Bisexual Leader", "Gay and Bisex, Mad Dog Disease", "Bar Council Out of Mind", read some of the banners strung up in the stadium.
The organiser also distributed anti-LGBT flyers and posters slamming national laureate Abdul Samad Said, popularly known as Pak Samad, and Bersih chairperson Ambiga Sreenavesan for allegedly rallying behind the LGBT movement.
According to the New Straits Times, the rally was also attended by students from eight institutions of higher learning as well as supporters of 18 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) including Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung (Federation of Malay Student's Union), Warisan Melayu (Malay Heritage). Like JMM, the latter two groups are regarded to be nationalist groups.
JMM president Azwanddin Hamzah was qupted as saying that the turnout at the two-hour rally was very encouraging. "The rousing applause and the cheering during the speeches clearly indicate that they are against LGBT."
He said although every individual had freedom of expression, Malaysia could never accept LGBT and free sex culture. "Through this peaceful assembly, we hope our voices will be heard that such practices should not be condoned, let alone by prominent figures in the country."
Other speakers reportedly lashed out at opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, former Bar Council president Datuk S. Ambiga and national laureate A. Samad Said for supporting the LGBT community. Ambiga is also the head of Bersih 2.0, a citizen’s movement for free and fair elections, that saw over 20,000 people demonstrate in Kuala Lumpur on 9 July 2011. The Bersih 3.0 demonstration planned for Saturday.
Malaysia's only sexuality rights festival Seksualiti Merdeka, which has been running largely without problems since 2008 with the support of numerous local and international organisations including the Malaysian Bar Council and other local human rights NGOs, was forcibly cancelled by the police last November.