SEA Games: Malaysia minister apologises

over Indonesia flag error

The Indonesian flag is depicted upside down in a Kuala Lumpur SEA Games 2017 booklet.
(Photo: Twitter/@imam_nahwari)
20 Aug 2017 01:50AM (Updated: 20 Aug 2017 07:18AM)

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin on Saturday (Aug
19) apologised to his Indonesian counterpart over a mistake on the Indonesian flag in a booklet
on the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games 2017.

In the booklet, the Indonesian flag appeared upside down. He said that the mistake was purely
unintentional.

"Please accept my sincere apologies for this. There was no malice," he said on his
Twitter account in response to a tweet from Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister Imam
Nahrawi regarding the matter.
"I very much regret that this mistake happened. My apologies."
Bapak Imam, Please accept my sincere apologies for this. Sesungguhnya tiada niat
jahat. Saya amat kesal dengan kesilapan ini. Mohon maaf.
— Khairy Jamaluddin (@Khairykj) August 19, 2017
Netizens voiced their discontent over the incident, with #ShameOnYouMalaysia
trending on Twitter.

"We will definitely protest," Nahrawi told Indonesia’s state-run news agency Antara on
Saturday. "We are also waiting for a direct apology from the government of Malaysia. How can
such a big and special event be tarnished by this?”

"This is really very careless and we are very, very disappointed," he added in a report by
Indonesian news portal Detik.com.

"This has injured us as a great nation … It should not be allowed to happen again, especially as
this is a very open event, watched by millions of eyes. Of course, we regret this incident."

Indonesian Secretary for the Youth and Sports Ministry Gatot S Dewa Broto told Indonesian
media that "every host country should be sensitive to symbols and symbols of the country,
because there are international convention rules about it."

He said Malaysia should have been sensitive as it is not the first time it is hosting an international
sporting event. He also advised Indonesia’s athletes taking part in the SEA Games not to be
provoked by the incident and to focus on their performances.

Meanwhile, the Malaysia SEA Games Organising Committee (MASOC), in a statement,

apologised to all Indonesians over the unintentional mistake.

It said Khairy, who is also MASOC chairman, would call on Imam Nahrawi on Sunday to extend
a personal apology on behalf of the committee.

"We truly regret this error and we hope that the close ties between the two countries will be
further enhanced in the spirit of the SEA Games," the statement said.

(Additional reporting by Chandni Vatvani)

Source: Bernama/CNA/ec
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minister-apologises-over-indonesia-flag-error-9139062