Malaysians 'not proud' of Beckham scandal girl
News that a Malaysian-born woman is at the centre of a sex scandal surrounding soccer superstar David Beckham is nothing for Malaysians to be proud of, a minister said in Kuala Lumpur.
“I am disappointed with some local newspapers that have highlighted the scandal as if it is the nation’s pride for a local to sleep with a celebrity,” Zainuddin Maidin, Malaysia’s deputy information minister, was quoted as saying in the New Straits Times newspaper.
Malaysia is a straight-laced society compared to some more freewheeling communities in Southeast Asia, with laws banning pornography, “close proximity” between young couples from the Muslim majority, and censors trimming out kisses and fondling from movies and magazines.
But Malaysia is also fanatical about European soccer and star-struck by Beckham and his popstar wife, Posh.
The Real Madrid midfielder’s alleged affairs with personal assistant Rebecca Loos and former model Sarah Marbeck have been headline news since the claims were first published in newspapers.
The Beckhams have dismissed the claims and say they have taken legal advice about the reports.
Marbeck was born in the southern state of Malacca and her family migrated to Perth, Australia, in 1993. Her father, Terrance, is a former Malaysian judge and still has a legal practice in Malaysia.
Malaysian newspapers in recent days have traced Marbeck’s classmates from a school she attended in a suburb near Kuala Lumpur, who described her as a churchgoer and a model student.
But the former model’s image has been tarnished by the claims of an escort agency boss who said she worked as a high-class prostitute and had a “vicious” streak.
Zainuddin warned the Malaysian media not to join the media frenzy.
“Some of the local newspapers are acting like foreign tabloids in Britain which focus on moral stigmas like sex scandals,” he was quoted as saying.
