KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community praised Elton John for battling through controversy to perform in the Southeast Asian country late last week. A number of activists and concertgoers told Bikyamasr.com that “he is more than an icon, he is a symbol of the struggle for our rights.” Lina Aziz, a 22-year-old university student and lesbian, told Bikyamasr.com that “Elton John battled the Islamists and came out on top because of his determination not to succumb to anger and bigotry. That has to be respected and I hope a few people at least understand that gay people are not a danger to society now.” Despite the success of the concert, some in the country were antagonistic toward the UK pop star. But some made a stink over the matter, saying that promoting and allowing Elton John to perform in the country will hit hard at the country's “moral fabric." The problem: John is gay. John, who is widely popular in Malaysia, performed on Thursday at a resort outside the capital Kuala Lumpur. But the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) had lashed out and said it is “immoral" for the country to host an openly gay performer in the country. “This concert must be cancelled. Artists who are involved in gay and lesbian activities must not be allowed to perform in Malaysia as they will promote the wrong values," Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi, chief of the youth wing, was quoted as saying by local media, ahead of the concert. The British star is currently on his Asian leg of a worldwide tour, and performed in Malaysia last November to a sell-out crowd despite a similar protest from the Islamic party. Nasrudin said PAS did not plan any street protests to oppose the concert, but “will instead demand that authorities cancel the immoral performance to protect our society from social degradation." The protest had angered both the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community as well as music lovers alike in Malaysia, in a rare display of unity between the two groups. Lesbian activist Mona told Bikyamasr.com on Tuesday that “this is simply ridiculous. It is like how Indonesia forced out Lady Gaga recently because they were concerned over what she wore on stage. This should be an issue for parents and not a morality police that doesn't exist in Malaysia," alluding to Indonesian Islamists galvanizing the country to force a ban of a sold-out Jakarta concert by the American female star. And it was not only the LGBT community who is frustrated. Ahmad Jabar Ahmad, a 20-year-old university student, told Bikyamasr.com that while he does not believe gay people should exist, “Elton John is Elton John and we might not like his choice of lifestyle, he should not be barred from performing in Malaysia. We all love him." John has not shied away from controversy during his Asia tour, as on Monday in China, he dedicated his concert to Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei. Many in Malaysia fear the rise of conservatism and radical Islam, but hope the government and concert organizers do not give in to the “handful of crazies," as Mona put it, and the concert will go off as planned.
