PUTRAJAYA: The Home Ministry (KDN) respects the High Court’s decision today which ordered the return of 172 ‘Pride Collection’ watches seized last year to the watch importer and seller, The Swatch Group (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd. Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said KDN would however obtain a full report on the judgment.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Saifuddin stated, “When KDN carried out enforcement in the case, it is clear that we applied the existing act and the enforcement division (according to) the considerations at the time. When the action is later challenged in court, and if that is the court’s decision, KDN should respect the decision, otherwise it is considered contempt of court, so I have to obtain a full report on the judgment.” He addressed reporters following his attendance at the KDN Monthly Assembly, which was also attended by Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah.
Earlier, Kuala Lumpur High Court Judge Datuk Amarjeet Singh made the decision after allowin
g the judicial review application filed by The Swatch Group (Malaysia) as the applicant against the secretary-general of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs Enforcement Division, the Minister of Home Affairs, and the Government of Malaysia as the first to fourth respondents. Amarjeet stated that the court also permitted the application by the applicant to cancel the seizure notice on the grounds that the seizure was made without a warrant and was illegal.
On June 24, 2023, The Swatch Group (Malaysia) filed a judicial review application to contest the Ministry of Home Affairs’ action to seize 172 watches, including the ‘Pride Collection’ series, which were allegedly associated with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. In the application, the applicant argued that the seizure of all the watches was unlawful because the goods were not a ‘publication’ that could be prohibited under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984.
According to the c
ompany, the watch from the 2023 design features one of the six colors of the rainbow, which is only visible on a small part of the watch’s bezel and does not promote any sexual symptoms. On May 13 and 14, 2023, KDN raided 11 Swatch brand watch boutiques in several states and seized a rainbow-themed collection allegedly associated with LGBT.