Rights lawyer Paulsen condemns assault on 2 men found half-naked in car

Snapshots from a viral video that apparently shows these two men being confonted by an angry group while they are in a car. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: Human rights lawyer Eric Paulsen has condemned the assault on two men caught for allegedly having sex in a car.

“This is a shocking assault on two men for no other reason than their apparent sexual orientation.

“This is clearly an aggravated criminal offence, a hate crime being perpetrated by a group of men,” he told FMT.

Paulsen was commenting on a video making the rounds on social media where an angry group confront the men, who are shirtless, shouting vulgarities at them in Bahasa Malaysia.

They force the two men to get out of the car and begin hitting them for allegedly “committing a sin”.

One of the assailants is heard saying: “Did you forget God? It’s a shame!”

Paulsen said the authorities must take such crimes seriously. “Everyone deserves equal protection under the law.”

He said Malaysians must not resort to violence for the slightest reason and respect the rule of law.

Another activist, Numan Afifi, also voiced his concern and said he was trying to obtain more information on the incident. He said he did not know where or when the incident occurred.

“The victims must be terrified with what happened and are probably lying low for now.”

In April, Islamic enforcement officers in Terengganu found two Muslim women attempting to engage in sexual acts in a car during patrols.

Later, in August, the two pleaded guilty to attempting to have lesbian sex. They were sentenced to six strokes of the cane and a fine of RM3,300 each after pleading guilty. - FMT