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November 4, 2011

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Malaysia bans women sex book

MALAYSIAN authorities plan to ban a book about sex published by a group of Muslim women who call themselves the Obedient Wives Club and advocate subservience to husbands, an official said yesterday.

The Malay-language book, entitled "Islamic Sex," is not available at stores but is believed to have been read by hundreds of members of the club formed this year by a small Malaysian Islamic sect that practices polygamy.

The book contains no explicit photographs but was written by the club's 56-year-old founder to describe her experiences and opinions on marriage. It has passages on how couples should approach sex physically and spiritually, claiming most women satisfy only 10 percent of their husbands' sexual needs.

The government's Islamic affairs department studied the 115-page book and recommended banning it because it could cause confusion among the Muslim majority about acceptable religious teachings, a Home Ministry official said.

Authorities have not decided when to ban the book formally, but people caught in possession of it can be fined up to 5,000 ringgit (US$1,600), the official said. Anyone who makes copies of it for sale can be imprisoned for three years and fined 20,000 ringgit.

Club leaders showed the book to journalists last month in an attempt to dispel what they called misconceptions that it was obscene and demeaning for women.

Many Malaysians have denounced the club, saying it makes a mockery of modern gender roles in a country where women hold prominent posts in the government and private sector.





 

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