47. In a latest case Tan Pooi Yee v Ketua Pengarah Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara65, in the High Court of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur which involved a plaintiff, a trans man the court ordered the plaintiff to be declared as a man and the last digit of the plaintiff’s identity card to reflect the male gender. The sitting judge, S Nathan Balan J viewed the court found the application “was a genuine application by a person who had been certified by the medical professional to be a male and the chromosomal requirement was archaic and should be discarded because it was impossible for a biology male to have female chromosomes and vice versa”66. He also viewed that “Plaintiff has a precious constitutional right to life under Article 5(1) of the Federal Constitutional of Malaysia and the concept of “life” under the Article 5 (1) must necessarily encompass the plaintiff’s right to live with dignity as a male and be legally accorded judicial recognition as a male.”67 Despite this, the Court of Appeal had allowed the appeal by the National Registration Department on the High Court’s decision and therefore setting aside the decision. As to the date of writing, there is no written judgement on the Court of Appeal decision of the case. Provisions related to criminal and civil laws 48. In Malaysia, there are laws which criminalised “oral and anal” sex between consenting adults as stated by section 377A of the Penal Code while the punishment is stated under section 377B of the same act. Based on the Attorney General’s Chambers and Royal Malaysia Police statistics, a total of 171 cases have been charged under section 377B of Penal Code from 2010 to 201468. The section 377D of the same law is also provide for punishments on “acts of indecency”. 49. Whereas Syariah laws apply only to Muslims, non – Muslims have also been subjected to “moral policing”.69 They are subjected to arrests during police raid in entertainment outlet and by municipal council for roaming around on the street as cross dressers which may be accused of disorderly behaviour in public places. A non-Muslim transgender could also be charged under the Section 21 of Minor Offence Act 1955 for “obscene” behaviour70. 65 66 67 68 [2016] 5 MLRH 501 [2016] 5 MLRH 501 at page 501 [2016] 5 MLRH 501 at page 523 http://www.agc.gov.my/agcportal/uploads/files/Publications/Press/Media%20Release%20Jabatan%20 Peguam%20Negara%20120215.pdf (accessed on 27 February 2017) 69 Shah, Shanon (2013) The Malaysian dilemma: negotiating sexual diversity in a Muslim-majority Commonwealth state. In: Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in The Commonwealth: Struggles for Decriminalisation and Change. Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London, P. 267. ISBN 978-0-9573548-8-3. Accessed via http://sas-space.sas. ac.uk/4810/1/09Shah.pdf 70 “Any person who is found drunk and incapable of taking care of himself, or who is guilty of any riotous, disorderly or indecent behaviour, or of persistently soliciting or importuning for immoral purposes in any public road or in any public place or place of public amusement or resort , or in immediate vicinity of any court or at any public office, police station or place of worship, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding twenty five ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen days, and on a second or subsequent conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred ringgit or imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or both.” Report On Transgender Persons In KL And Selangor | 25