Each year around this time the usual freak-outs about the Day of Cupid commence among those who think red paper hearts, a dozen roses and a box of candy are the Great Satan (read: too associated with the West). There’s the annual Valentine bonfire and romance buzzkills in India, and the crackdown on the color red in Saudi Arabia. And in Malaysia, there’s a campaign to keep your panties on. More:

“A non-governmental organisation in Malaysia is gearing itself up against Valentine’s Day and a plan to get a group of students to go without panties on that day.

It had earlier been reported that female students in higher learning institutes in Shah Alam were being persuaded not to wear panties on Valentine’s Day as an expression of true love for their boyfriends.

The ‘no-panties’ promotion, being held for the first time, has apparently been gaining interest among the students who are passing the news by word of mouth.

The Secretariat Against Social Ills Penang (Urusetia Menangani Gejala Sosial Pulau Pinang or Unggas) fears that the “no panties” promotion, may soon find its way into secondary schools if not checked.”

The secretariat said that about 500 volunteers would conduct a sting operation of sorts on Valentine night, concentrating on ‘counseling’ couples.

Here’s an entertaining — and mocking, fittingly — take on the Panty War in Malaysia’s Sin Chew Daily.

(Photo by Jessica Rinaldi/Getty Images)