The government's position that lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders (LGBTs) are not protected from discrimination is legally unsound, the PKR said today.

Its position goes against Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, which guarantees all citizens equal protection before the law, PKR vice-president N Surendran said.

NONE "The constitution is blind to a person's sexual orientation and treats all citizens equally," Surendran added in a statement.

Earlier today, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mashitah Ibrahim told the Dewan Rakyat that the LGBT community is not protected under the Federal Constitution.

Mashitah argued that Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 8 define gender as whether a person is a male or female and that the clauses are not based on sexual preferences.

Surendran, who is a recognised human rights lawyer, argued that Article 8 (2) forbids gender discrimination and refers to gender-related behaviour and attitudes, not just biological sex differences.

"In this regard, Mashitah shows appalling ignorance by claiming that the bar against gender discrimination in Article 8 (2) only relates to whether a person is male or female.

"Further, Article 10 of the constitution enshrines every person's right to freedom of expression. This includes the right to express sexual orientation," said Surendran.

'Harsh, unfeeling attitude'

He argued that such provisions are consistent with the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

"It is shocking that the government is trying to remove a class of citizens from the protection of the federal constitution based upon their sexual orientation.

"This is a harsh, reactionary and unfeeling attitude of the government against LGBT citizens.

In view of this, Surendran said, PKR calls upon the federal government to act in accordance with the federal constitution and cease all propaganda and discrimination against LGBT citizens.

Although traditionally ignored, the LGBT community has come under increasing scrutiny by the federal government of late, as civil society intensifies efforts to protect their rights.

There have been attempts to use civil society's support for LGBT rights as a reason to discredit their legitimacy, such as in the case of Bersih 2.0 leader Ambiga Sreenevasan .