A court sentenced four women to 12 days jail for performing erotic dances in their underwear at one of the capital's latest nightclubs, local media reported today.

The four women broke down and cried when magistrate Hamidah Mohamed Deril pronounced the jail sentence, the Star said.

The four women, all in their early 20s, pleaded guilty to behaving inappropriately in public by performing an erotic dance wearing see-through undergarments at the Zouk Club on May 5.

Two male dancers, also in their early 20s, were charged with committing the same offence. They pleaded not guilty and their case will be heard in June.

Muslim Malays

The dancers - all of whom are Muslim Malays - were paid for their performance, police spokesman Wong Chan Yim was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times .

Malaysia is one of the world's most developed Islamic countries, boasting modern highways, gleaming skyscrapers, resplendent mosques, high-tech factories and a pulsating nightlife of discos and restaurants.

Muslim Malays make up some 55 percent of Malaysia's 25 million population but most Muslims follow a fairly tolerant interpretation of the faith. - AFP