In reference to the episode of Wanita Hari Ini, titled “Pondan, Ancaman Wanita”, aired on 4th October 2011 at TV3, we, the Mak Nyah community of Malaysia, are appalled at the defamatory and slanderous statements made by the hosts of the program as well as the invited guest speakers towards the Mak Nyah community. We feel that as a national TV station, it is your responsibility to foster national unity in the spirit of 1Malaysia. By providing publicity to unsubstantiated statements and relying on sensationalism, you have shown you are no better than the tabloids that rely on cheap publicity.

We demand a public apology. Your public apology should acknowledge that your station, by airing the show, had unjustly incited fear and prejudice towards the transgender community in Malaysia, which included, but were not limited to the following acts:

1) Making statements based on assumptions, perceptions and personal views;

2) Basing arguments on personal opinions instead of factual or research data;

3) Inviting unqualified individuals as guest speakers and introducing them as “experts” for the sake of backing slanderous statements;

4) Humiliation, including but not limited to; using terms like “sotong" and “geli”, derogatory hand gestures, asking questions in a degrading intonation.

 

We demand that you formally apologise for:

1) Airing a show that promotes further persecution and prejudice against a group of already marginalised people, who are stigmatised and discriminated against from young, who have been denied education and employment opportunities and other types of benefits that the larger Malaysian society enjoys;

2) Allowing slanderous and defamatory remarks used on national TV, inviting unqualified Guest speakers to talk about a topic that is not their area of expertise, encouraging undue discrimination towards a group of people on baseless grounds, using assumptions, personal views and perceptions instead of statistics, research and facts.

Your station should be aware of its role as a means to educate and disseminate valid information to the public. Many Mak Nyahs had to turn to the streets as a result of rampant discrimination while seeking employment, in the form of rejection on the basis of appearance and gender expression without regard to their qualifications. To suggest that an employed Mak Nyah is conspiring to take away the jobs from women, would cause them to suffer suspicion, mistreatment and discrimination at their workplace both by fellow colleagues and employers.

In June 2011, the Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil and the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak set a target for women to fill up 30% of top management positions within a span of 5 years. Yet, in the airing of this show, your station has portrayed women in stereotypical “female only” occupations. This is a violation of Article 5 of the Federal Constitution, as your action can be interpreted as an attempt of halting women’s progressive developments as equal to their male counterpart.

Furthermore, by proposing the idea that Mak Nyahs are taking husbands from women, your station has only served to drag Malaysia back into the dark ages and patriarchal age-old tactics of blame — if it’s not the woman’s fault, then it’s the Mak Nyah’s fault. This is again a dangerous act on your part in stereotyping women’s roles and responsibilities in relationships.

Since the program is targeted to women in general, the producer should be aware that there are women who are mothers and sisters of Mak Nyahs, and they accept the Mak Nyahs as their own flesh and blood. Broadcasting such incriminating statements would be an indirect insult towards them as well.

TV3 has been very unprofessional in it’s insensitivity towards the Mak Nyah community and women of Malaysia. It has become an international embarrassment to know that despite being an advanced country in so many other ways, we are still promoting thoughts and positions that are so archaic and demeaning to Malaysia. We demand a public apology for the defamatory broadcast made, clearly citing the reasons above, as well as a commitment from TV3 not to air any shows that promotes prejudice and discrimination of any minority groups.

Sincerely,

The undersigned.