Mini-skirts, see-through blouses and tight pants are now outlawed for women of
all religions in Kelantan state.
Authorities said they would "no longer tolerate indecent dressing," The Star
reported.
Kelantan's local government committee chairman, Takiyuddin Hassan, said
"eye-popping" outfits invited undesirable attention from men.
"We apologize to non-Muslims if this comes across as harsh," he said of the new
rules, "but we must respect our Asian culture and religion in public."
Enforcement officers will step up checks to enforce the regulation, which is
punishable with a 500 ringgit (USD $125) fine, officials said, citing mounting
complaints from the public over skimpy outfits.
Malaysia's population is dominated by Muslim Malays, who live alongside ethnic
Chinese and Indians.
Race relations are generally peaceful, but in recent years there has been
growing unease over the "Islamization." Kelantan is the only state to be ruled
by the fundamentalist Islamic opposition party, PAS, which has lost ground to
the United Malays National Organization that rules nationally.
In the capital, meanwhile, Malaysian lawmakers called for foreign prostitutes
to be whipped as a deterrent to others sex workers.
Mohamed Aziz of the ruling National Front coalition told parliament that he had
met a transvestite from Brunei who said he moved to Malaysia because the rules
were more lenient.
"He told me that in Brunei, prostitutes would be whipped," he said. "If we can
impose whipping for drug addicts, why can't we do the same for prostitutes?"
His proposal was supported by at least one other lawmaker.
Malaysia is considering introducing tougher laws against prostitution amid
concerns over an influx of foreign sex workers, such as Chinese and Filipinos,
who enter on tourist visas.
Deputy Internal Security Minister Johari Baharum has said that more than 15,500
foreign women were arrested for prostitution from 2004 to July 2006, including
more than 6,000 from China, 4,596 from Indonesia, 2,613 from Thailand and 1,316
from Philippines.
Women from Vietnam, Cambodia, Uzbekistan, India, Burma, Russia, Laos and
Cambodia also visit Malaysia to engage in the sex trade, he said.
Agence France-Presse
