KUALA LUMPUR: Police arrested eight men for holding a gathering on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues in front of a shopping complex on Saturday.
Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain said the men aged between 18 and 56 were picked up the same day as the gathering.
The group was seen holding placards that read "Only God can judge", "Being gay is not a crime" and "Down down Syariah Court", he said.
"Investigations found that all of them were followers of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light), who believe that punishment for humans can only be imposed by God. They have been followers for two years.
"Investigations are under Section 186 of the Penal Code, Section 14 of the Minor Offences Act 1955 and Section 9(5) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012.
"Further investigations found that one of them was arrested two weeks ago for distributing flyers of the teachings at the Putrajaya Mosque," Shuhaily told a press conference today.
He said the eight men were remanded for a day before being released on police bail.
When asked if the group was a cult, Shuhaily replied:
"That's a good question. As to whether it is a cult or not, it depends if their teachings have been banned by the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department (Jawi).
"Jawi has opened investigation papers on this to take a closer look in the context of the religion, among other things."
Earlier, a 48-second video uploaded by a TikTok user went viral. It showed several men holding placards supporting LGBT issues in front of a shopping centre here.
Among the messages written on the placards were, "Gay people are not criminals and being gay is not a crime".