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'Telolet' meme gets lost in translation, Twitter user bullied
The “Om Telolet Om” craze turned sour on Indonesian social media when what was meant to be an ironic joke got lost in translation and a Twitter user was bullied for her post
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Twitter is adding the ability for users to broadcast live video directly from its app. (AP/Richard Drew)
S
ince it skyrocketed in popularity on Tuesday, the “Om Telolet Om” meme has been on every Indonesian’s mind, each and every one waiting for new jokes to forward and share on social media. The world’s response via popular DJs videos and mixes has also added to the fun, putting the spotlight on Indonesia’s lighthearted sense of humor, which has been overshadowed by many issues of intolerance in the past month.
However, some have failed to see the funny side as the “Om Telolet Om” craze turned sour on Indonesian social media when what was meant to be an ironic joke got lost in translation and a Twitter user was bullied for her post. Jonriah Jonru Ukur, an anonymous humor parody account for one of Indonesia’s most notorious social media persona, Jonru, posted the following meme regarding the sudden surge of “Om Telolet Om” popularity.
The meme reads:
“Beware ‘Om Tolelot Om’, it is a conspiracy to belittle the aqidah. OM is a holy word for Sang Hyang Widhi, the Hindu God, whose full pronunciation is ‘Om Swastiastu’. Telolet is a synonym of ‘trumpet’ which is a typical worship tool for the Jews. Naudzubillahimindzalik, stop OM TOLELOT OM from now, take good care of the aqidah, stay away from anything that can belittle the aqidah.”
The meme was picked up by Sofiyah Hafidz, a university student from Yogyakarta, who then posted it on her Twitter account.
Tum @PartaiSocmed bisa bantu orang ini terkenal gak? @sofiatafta pic.twitter.com/7Fkjqf88vr
— Coach Adi Setyo (@adisetyo) December 21, 2016
“I posted the meme on Twitter purely for humor. Some of my friends with a lot of Twitter followers retweeted the post with the intention of being funny and so that we could laugh about it. It’s a regular thing between us,” Sofiyah told The Jakarta Post, on Friday.
“But ultimately things got out of hand, and people started getting angry at me because they took my tweet seriously and failed to see that it was intended to be ironic.” she added.
(Read also: 'Om Telolet Om' to appear at world's largest paint party)
Sofiyah’s tweet was retweeted over 200 times and caused quite a stir in the Twitterverse as it was perceived as provocative.
@sofiatafta like dan ketik amin, kalau tidak menyebarkan hidupmu akan sengsara selama 7 tahun... mbaknya piknik yukk drpd pikirannya kemana2
— Zulfa (@Mrs_Zulfa) December 22, 2016
@sofiatafta yuk bantu report akun ini, dy udah menyebarkan kebencian antar agama.. Bantu saya untuk report ke pihak twiter
— Rezza Effendi (@RezzaSiRastaman) December 21, 2016
Some twitter users kept their cool and stayed sensible with regard to the matter.
@sofiatafta sabar aja, ambil hikmahnya, kondisi sekarang lagi sangat sensitif, jadi harus berhati hati lagi dalam mengemukakan sesuatu :)
— Teru Teru Botzu™ (@teru2botzu) December 21, 2016
@sofiatafta sarkasme juga harusnya lebih pinter menggunakannya. Karena ga semua orang bisa diajak bersarkasme ria. Cmiiw mbak
— Imam Bonek (@W7067UZ) December 22, 2016
Mungkin bagi sebagian orang, gambar sarkas ini berbau agama. Tapi sebenernya enggak. @sofiatafta cuma menyindir kaum yg apa2 slalu agama pic.twitter.com/gaZQA3xafA
— Muhammad (@ShidQ_) December 22, 2016
The overwhelming negative responses she received from strangers on Twitter forced Sofiyah to post a clarification note on her Facebook page.
Sofiyah told the Post that she was not the one who created the meme, and that she has apologized to the general public via her Facebook clarification. “This bothers me because I seriously had no agenda when I posted the tweet. I just didn’t think it through and never imagined that a tweet retweeted by my closest friends would be regarded so seriously by those who don’t even know me.”
