Malaysia Ranked Second Worse Country in the World For Transgender Community

It’s no secret that the LGBTQIA+ community has it hard in Malaysia, but so much so that our country has now been named the 2nd worse country in the world for transgender rights.

A new study by Asher & Lyric, called the 203 Best (& Worst) Countries for Trans Rights in 2023, reviewed all countries’ individual laws and gathered data from a variety of trusted international sources to create the definitive ‘Global Trans Rights Index’.

And among the 203 countries included in the ranking from best to worst, Malaysia came out at number 202.

For Malaysia, Asher & Lyric concluded that “trans people face obstacles and targeting by police”.

Among the factors taken into consideration for this study are: 

• Worker protections
• Protection against discrimination
• Criminalisation of violence (against trans people)
• Transgender legal identity laws
• Trans murder rates

For all of the above factors, Malaysia ranked the lowest at ‘no transgender protections’, giving us a Global Trans Rights Index of -105 and a safety rating of an F (on a scale of A to F).

While we understand that Malaysia is a country with certain sensitivities, it still doesn’t feel right that there are communities of people who are constantly in danger here.

Also read: KDN Raids Swatch Outlets to Seize Pride Collection Watches Over LGBTQIA+ Association