I was 13 years old when I first heard of the Sultan of Brunei. The absolute ruler of a tiny, oil-rich kingdom in Southeast Asia, Hassanal Bolkiah was the subject of a much-discussed TV documentary by the British filmmaker Alan Whicker in 1992. As a young teenager, sitting in front of the television, I was in awe of this Muslim king.

Homophobia is not the monopoly of any one country, culture, or religion.

There are no authentic reports in any of the Muslim books of history of the Prophet Muhammad punishing anyone for same-sex acts.

Mehdi Hasan Quotes