AsiaNews Magazine Jan10-16,2014 ( Jan 1-7,2014) | Seite 9

WEEKLY BRIEFING

January 10-16, 2014

From sex blog
to book
KUALA LUMPUR: Alvin Tan,
25, half of the sex blogger duo
Alvivi (the other is Vivian Lee, 24),
is releasing an e-book “Sex, Pork
and Persecution”, where he talks
about his one-week stint in Sungai
Buloh prison, among other things.
Tan was sent to the maximumsecurity facility to await trial after
being denied bail in July last year.
As inmate number 31303963,
Tan takes on a frank and humorous
tone in the chapter, “Wonder What
It's Like In A Malaysian Jail?”
The co-author of Sumptuous
Erotica, a now-defunct public
sex blog, Tan described his
humiliations in explicit detail.
In an allusion to his original
Ramadan Facebook prank, Tan
also earned a peculiar nickname
from the more affectionate

guards during his stay in jail.
Routine checks included
hearing shouts of "Hey, Bak Kut
Teh!", which was his cue to drop
everything he was doing and stand
at the door to show them that
he had not committed suicide.
On July 11 last year, Tan and
Lee stirred up a controversy
with a Selamat Berbuka Puasa
(Break Fasting greeting) greeting
uploaded to their joint Facebook
page during Ramadan.
The picture, which also contained
a halal logo, depicted them eating
bak kut teh described as 'wangi,
enak, menyelerakan' (fragrant,

delicious, appetising) and caused
an uproar among Malaysians of
all races for their insensitivity.
They were jointly charged with
publishing the photograph with
possibly seditious statements,
uploading pornographic images on
their blog, and uploading content
that had the possibility to stir
hostility based on religion between
those with different beliefs.
Their trial has been postponed,
pending a bid to have the charge
under Section 298A(1) of the
Penal Code for stirring hostility
between religions struck out.
—Michelle Tam/The Star