In September, it was revealed that Thai immigration authorities had made an unusual arrest in Bangkok. The prisoner is Nur Sajat Kamaruzaman, a glamorous 36-year-old Malaysian cosmetics entrepreneur with a massive following on social media.
Nur Sajat’s offense was wearing the badge brackets, the traditional long-sleeved garment worn by Malay women, at private religious ceremonies in 2018. In the eyes of Malaysian authorities, Nur Sajat is male and Islamic law does not allow men to dress as women.
Only Sajat is a transgender woman and thus has received refugee status and is allowed to apply for asylum from Thailand in Australia. Speaking to the in Sydney, he said he had no choice but to flee after being attacked by officials of JAIS, Selangor’s religious affairs division. Who brought charges against him.
“I had to run away. They grabbed me violently; I was beaten, handcuffed, all in front of my parents and family. I was ashamed and sad.”Maybe it’s because they see me as a trans woman, so they don’t care if I’m held, beaten, or branded. We transgender people have feelings too.
We deserve to live our lives as ordinary people. Only Sajat became a successful entrepreneur. Seven years ago, he says, he started advertising on social media. As a result, she develops her skin and wellness supplements, especially with the corsets that bear her brand name. With her impeccably groomed appearance and hilarious posts on social networks, she gained thousands of followers and became a national celebrity. Then the question of her gender begins.
It was never a secret.
Nur Sajat entered the famous transsexual beauty pageant in Thailand in 2013 and won an award for her dance. What caused a stir in Malaysia is that she is also a devout Muslim and publishes photos of the hijab, the Islamic headgear for women. He explained to those who requested that he be born with male and female genitals or intersex. A condition treated with greater tolerance in Islam than those who change their gender.
In 2017, Nur Sajat announced that she was now entirely female and released a medical report to support this. The authorities decided to investigate. JAKIM, the Ministry of Islamic Development, said he needed proof that he was born intersex. He offered to help Nur Sajat with what he called “gender confusion.”
Last year, there was further controversy when photos of Nur Sajat in women’s prayer clothes. With her family on the pilgrimage to Mecca were released and sparked criticism from conservative Muslims. He later apologized for causing such a fuss but was charged with criminal charges within a year.