The Kuala Lumpur regime will be delighted that the focus is on the 1975, rather than the human rights abuses the band condemned
Matty Healy of the 1975 pop group is being condemned by critics for having a “white saviour complex” and seeking to impose “western” values on Malaysia. The accusation comes after he used his recent Kuala Lumpur concert to denounce the country’s harsh anti-LGBTQ+ laws. But he got roars of approval from the crowd. They clearly agreed with what he said.
And while some Malaysian LGBT people were critical, others were supportive. They argue that queer rights are a universal human right, not a western one, and that these rights are now supported by a sizeable minority of the Malaysian population – especially young people.
Peter Tatchell is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation and the subject of the Netflix documentary, Hating Peter Tatchell
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
