Is flag burning illegal in Malaysia?

Criminal offense

Flag desecration is illegal in Malaysia under the Penal Code, Sedition Act, and Emblems & Names Act.

Malaysia is one of 53 countries classified “Criminal offense” for flag desecration — 79% of the 67 with data. (Also searched as flag burning.)

Source

Taken from
Wikipedia: Flag desecration
Last checked
7 July 2026
How it was classified
Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.

Nearby countries

Indonesia
Criminal offense Destroying or defacing the Indonesian national flag is punishable by up to ten years imprisonment.
Singapore
Criminal offense Singapore law criminalizes flag desecration with fines up to S$30,000 or imprisonment.
Philippines
Criminal offense It is illegal to mutilate, deface, or insult the flag with penalties including fines and imprisonment.
Thailand
Criminal offense Thailand fines or jails those who insult national flags, though foreign flags are not specifically mentioned.
Hong Kong
Criminal offense Flag desecration is illegal in Hong Kong, with convictions and prison sentences for such acts.
Taiwan
Criminal offense Taiwan criminalizes insulting national flags or emblems with penalties up to one year imprisonment.

Other laws in Malaysia

Blasphemy Laws
Criminal offense
Holocaust Denial
No specific law

Every law in Malaysia → · Where is burning the flag illegal? →

A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.