Malaysia raids Swatch stores, seizes colourful watches linked to gay pride

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia –

Swiss watchmaker Swatch stated Tuesday that Malaysian authorities raided its shops and confiscated 164 watches from its Pride Collection.

It stated Ministry of Home Affairs officers raided its shops in varied malls throughout Malaysia on May 13 and 14 and seized the watches as a result of they “bore LGBT connotations.”

The watches are available a selection of six colors, matching these on the homosexual satisfaction flag, and have two rainbow loops on their straps.

“We strongly contest that our collection of watches using rainbow colours and having a message of peace and love could be harmful for whomever,” Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek Jr. stated in an announcement.

“On the contrary, Swatch always promotes a positive message of joy in life. This is nothing political. We wonder how the Regulatory and Enforcement Division of the Home Ministry will confiscate the many beautiful natural rainbows that are showing up a thousand times a year in the sky of Malaysia,” he stated.

Predominantly Muslim Malaysia criminalizes same-sex relationships, with punishments starting from caning below Islamic legal guidelines to twenty years in jail for sodomy below colonial-era civil legal guidelines. The opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party not too long ago criticized a scheduled live performance in November by British band Coldplay due to its assist of the LGBTQ2S+ motion.

Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution informed the AP that he’s ready for a full report on the matter earlier than issuing an announcement.

Swatch stated it has resumed promoting the Pride Collection watches and that its authorized division is wanting into the seizure.

Gay rights group Jejaka slammed the confiscation of the watches, saying it confirmed “a deeply unsettling level of intolerance.”

“It is more than a matter of colourful watches. It’s about respect for diversity, freedom of expression, and, most importantly, love,” it stated in an announcement. It urged the federal government to advertise a tradition of acceptance and understanding reasonably than repression and discrimination.