For the individuals whose testimony is presented below, the most significant dis- crimination issue arises from the fact that most mak nyahs are Malay Muslims, and are therefore subject to the provisions of the Syariah criminal legislation. Syariah law is enacted at the state and not the federal level, and most of the state criminal law enactments contain a prohibition of “cross-dressing”. For example, Section 28 of the Syariah Criminal Offences (Federal Territories) Act 1997 prohibits any male person from wearing a woman’s attire in a public place and posing as a woman for immoral purposes. Such provisions have been used by the Malaysian religious authorities (the Jabatan Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Negeri Sembilan) to oppress the mak nyah community, through the use of raids, interrogation, violence and detention.