Nudist scandal: Four from Singapore identified

The names of the four people from Singapore who were involved in a nudist event in Penang were released by the Malaysian police yesterday.

They are Mr Albert Yam, a Malaysian who is a Singapore permanent resident and has been identified as one of the event's organisers, Mr Lionel Lau and Mr Terry Lau, and Kok Hong, who is believed to be a director at a local media company.

Attempts to contact them were not successful yesterday.

The event in May, which involved 18 people, including six women, has created an uproar across the Causeway, with the story making the front pages. Police there have said they will call in Interpol to help bring in the foreigners involved for questioning.

The names of another 11 participants were also released after they failed to turn themselves in. They included seven other Malaysians, two people from Myanmar, and one each from India and the Philippines.

The participants are all aged between their 20s and 50s.

Penang police, who received 11 reports complaining about the event, also said that they have arrested a 34-year-old private music teacher, who was identified only as "Ellen".

The Straits Times reported yesterday that Mr Yam, a self-proclaimed "naturist", had also recorded himself and a few like-minded people naked in public places in Singapore, including MacRitchie Reservoir, Changi and in an East Coast Park resort.

Malaysian Chew Tok Hwa, a 57-year-old retired teacher and the other organiser of the Penang event, was also pictured nude in one of these videos.

It was also revealed yesterday in the Malaysian media that Ms Chew was a former Gerakan Wanita chief in Kedah during the 1980s. Gerakan is a party in the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.The scandal erupted after a 51/2 minute video of the so-called "Penang Nude Sports Games" recorded by Mr Yam went viral across the Causeway.

The clip showed the participants dancing with one another in the nude at a beach said to be located in Teluk Bahang in Penang. They also sat around a fire and camped for the night, taking pictures of one another.

According to Teluk Bahang assemblyman Shah Headan Ayoob Hussain, a Penang National Park watchman was allegedly threatened by the nudists when he told them to stop stripping.

"We're still investigating why the watchman did not report the matter to the management," he said, describing the nudist event as a catastrophe and uncivilised.

"This incident has damaged the reputation of the country, not just the image of the park."

awcw@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on August 9, 2014.
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