GEORGE TOWN, March 14 — Under pressure from Muslim activists, the organiser of Pink Dot Penang 2014 cancelled at the last minute the event aimed to help people with different sexual orientations cope with abuse and discrimination.

The Penang branch of Suaram, a human rights group, insisted the event was not a “sex party” as alleged by several Muslim rights organisations but decided to call it off after considering the views and taking into account the safety of its members and that of the participants.

“It is not a sex party as some groups have slandered it to be, but the minority community needs such an occasion for meaningful discussion and self-help,” it said in a statement today.

“Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to develop and discuss new human rights ideas and principles and to advocate their acceptance,” it added, pointing to Article 10 of the Federal Constitution that guarantees the freedom of expression, assembly and association.

Pink Dot Penang 2014, jointly organised by Penang Freedom of Love, Rainbow Coalition and Penang Suaram was supposed to take place on March 29, as a support platform for the Malaysia’s minority lesbians, bisexuals, gays and transgenders (LBGT) faced with violence and discrimination.

It had been publicised on social media networks, including Facebook, which drew protests from Muslim groups such as Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (Abim), Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) and Malay rights group Penang Perkasa.

Labelling it as a “pesta seks sonsang Pulau Pinang” (Penang deviant sex festival), the groups claimed such events, if allowed, would only encourage the spread of immoral activities that all religions frowned on; they also lodged police reports against the planned event.

“We not condone LGBT lifestyle so we will not allow such events to be organised in Penang or even in any part of Malaysia,” Balik Pulau Perkasa information chief Mat Pazli Ismail said in a news conference today at the Hotel 1926 here.

Penang Perkasa had yesterday lodged four police reports against the event and its organisers.

The group even went a step further this morning and demanded the management of Hotel 1926 — where Pink Dot Penang was to take place—explain why it had allowed the organisers to use its premises for the event.

“We do not know what will happen if the programme continues and we hope hotels will be more careful when accepting bookings for events because we do not want any untoward incidents to happen to the hotel,” Pazli said.

He further demanded the Penang government and hotels ban future events of this nature.

Hotel 1926’s manager Peter Pedley said the Pink Dot Penang’s organisers had called to cancel the booking yesterday afternoon.

“We did not know what event they were planning as they only told us that they are booking the function room for a meeting,” Pedley said.

But not all Muslims were against the event.

Penang PAS Youth secretary Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden observed that Singapore had also organised a Pink Dot event last year, and suggested that such an event for the LGBT community need not be seen as something negative.

But he also expressed his relief that the organisers had taken into account religious sensitivities and cancelled the gig.