Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today the values and rights of the majority should trump the demands of minority groups.

In fact, he said, minority groups that challenge majority values in the name of personal liberty were ‘less civilised’.

NONE Speaking at the launch of the Che Det coffee table book, Mahathir said  demanding things that challenge societal values is “going overboard” ( keterlaluan ).

“As we live in a society, we cannot follow our emotions to demand individual freedoms, as this can infringe on the rights of others... including the majority.

“Any sane person who is highly civilised will avoid (making demands) that can deny the freedom of others,” he said.

Despite this, there were still calls for the protection of personal liberties, in accordance to Western values, because “the rights of society as a whole are not prioritised”.

NONE Giving a lecture on civilisation and culture, Mahathir said this Western concept of defending personal liberties “no matter what” would lead to “chaos”.

“Freedom has its limits and a civilised race will know this limit,” he said.

Malaysia’s fourth prime minister added that championing personal liberties was today “used by certain groups” who are “disappointed” because they cannot influence power.

“In democracy, the power lies with the majority, and the minority is disappointed that the majority sets up a government that infringes on what they see as their fundamental rights,” he said.

Mahathir’s comments come in the wake of controversy over Seksualiti Merdeka, a festival aimed at promoting awareness on the rights of the lesbian, gay, transsexual and bisexual community.

The octogenarian had last week said he supported the ban on the festival because unlimited freedom could lead to “naked people walking in the streets and people having sex in public”.