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Malaysia and Indonesia are next if homosexuals are prosecuted, George Clooney warns


You don't want to mess around with George Clooney.

The Hollywood heavyweight have been instrumental in halting the controversial death penalty in Brunei. In March, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah had revealed his intentions to pass a law that would see homosexuals stoned to death for practising same sex relationships.

Clooney together with Elton John had led a campaign to boycott hotels owned by the Sultan.

The Sultan relented and has put the law on a moratorium. Now, speaking on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Clooney warns that Indonesia and Malaysia could be next.

In the interview Clooney revealed why his boycott campaign was successful.

“(Boycotts) don’t matter so much to a rich guy. You can’t shame the bad guys, but you can shame those who do business with them. When the banks, and when the financial institutions started saying well, we’re out of the Brunei business, then (the Sultan) backed off... And more important for this is this is something that is manageable because it sends a warning shot over to countries like Indonesia and Malaysia who are also considering these laws that the business people, the big banks, those guys are going to say don’t even get into that business," he says to DeGeneres.

Malaysia and Indonesia has no laws against homosexuality but the act itself is considered a crime.

George Clooney (left) and Elton John (right) mounted a boycott campaign against Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

In recent years, homosexuals and transgenders have been attacked violently while some have been caned in Malaysia.

Over in Indonesia, a city in Sumatra had mulled on decriminalising the act by fining anyone displaying affection to the same sex.

Clooney might be seen as a champion for LGBTQ rights specifically in the Southeast Asian region. But he's forgotten Singapore.

The Lion City too, like its neighbours, view homosexuality as a crime. Only, folks don't talk about it in the open because they fear backlash.

Cover image sourced from YouTube / The Ellen Show.