This article discusses places and practices of young heterosexual Malaysian Muslims dating in non-private urban spaces. It is based on research conducted in Kuala Lumpur in two consecutive summers 2016 and 2017. Malaysian law (Khalwat law) does not allow for two unrelated people (where at least one of them is Muslim) of opposite sexes to be within ‘suspicious proximity’ of one another in public. This law significantly influences behaviors and activities in urban spaces in KL. In addition to the legal framework, the beliefs of Malaysian Muslims significantly influence the way they perceive space and how they behave in the city. The article discusses the empirical theme, beginning with the participants’ narratives of their engagement with the dominant sexual and gender order in non-private spaces of KL. Utilizing questionnaires, interviews and observations, this article draws upon a qualitative research project and questions the analytical usefulness of the notion of public space (as a Western construct) in the context of an Islamic, post-colonial, tropical, global city.

中文翻译：

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在马来西亚取消对公共空间的殖民化：在吉隆坡约会

本文讨论了年轻的异性恋马来西亚穆斯林在非私人城市空间约会的地点和做法。它基于2016年和2017年连续两个夏天在吉隆坡进行的研究。马来西亚法律（哈尔瓦特法）不允许两个不相干的人（其中至少一个人是穆斯林）处于“可疑范围”内在公共场合彼此。该法律极大地影响了吉隆坡城市空间的行为和活动。除了法律框架外，马来西亚穆斯林的信仰还极大地影响着他们对空间的感知方式以及他们在城市中的行为方式。本文讨论了经验主题，从参与者对他们在吉隆坡非私人空间中占主导地位的性和性别秩序的叙述开始。利用问卷调查，