On Saturday, Malaysian officials canceled a weekend music festival after the frontman of a British indie rock group kissed his male bandmate following a diatribe against the country’s anti-LGBTQ laws.
In Malaysia, homosexuality is outlawed, and laws criminalizing sodomy are punishable by imprisonment. Authorities regularly discriminate against LGBTQ people in the country.
British rock band ‘The 1975’ halted their Good Vibes music festival performance short on Friday after lead singer Matty Healy attacked Malaysia’s anti-gay laws in a profanity-laced tirade before kissing bassist Ross MacDonald on stage.
Healy told fans that the band considered canceling the gig, adding, “I do not see the point of inviting 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with”.
He abruptly ended the set afterward, saying: “All right, we gotta go. We just got banned from Kuala Lumpur”.
Healy’s on-stage protest was not his first. In 2019, he kissed a male fan at a concert in the United Arab Emirates, which has strict anti-LGBTQ laws.
Malaysian Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil promised prompt action in response to the kiss, calling it a “very rude act”.
After meeting with organizers, he later ordered the immediate cancellation of the three-day festival.
“Never touch the sensitivities of the community, especially those that are against the manners and values of the local culture”, he added.
“The Ministry has emphasized its unwavering stance against any parties that challenge, ridicule, or violate Malaysian laws”, the statement reads.
The Good Vibes festival was set to run all weekend, with US band ‘The Strokes’ headlining on Sunday.
Authorities seized over a hundred rainbow-colored, pride-themed watches from Swiss watchmaker Swatch two months ago.
Since then, the corporation has filed a lawsuit against the government, seeking monetary damages as well as the return of the timepieces.
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