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Jakarta Post

Jokowi forgives Malaysia over flag flop: spokesman

Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Mon, August 21, 2017

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Jokowi forgives Malaysia over flag flop: spokesman Saturday's tweets from Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi (left) and Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin (right) on the 'flag incident'. (JP/JP)

P

resident Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has forgiven the Malaysian organizers of the 29th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Kuala Lumpur for misprinting the Indonesian flag in the event's opening ceremony guidebook, Jokowi’s spokesman has said.

Pictures of the book showing the affectionately dubbed Red-and-White placed upside down, with the white atop the red, quickly went viral on Aug. 19, prompting an uproar on social media.

Presidential spokesperson Johan Budi said Jokowi had indeed waited for an apology from the Malaysian side since the incident occurred.

Now that Malaysia's Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has formally apologized to his Indonesian counterpart Imam Nahrawi, all parties should move on, he added.

"Most importantly, they have apologized and withdrawn the books," Johan said at the Presidential Compound in Jakarta on Monday.

"Of course [the President] has forgiven them if they apologized," he added.

Johan said Jokowi hoped Indonesians would not overreact to the incident.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman has also released a statement of apology to the Indonesian government.

"On behalf of the government of Malaysia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to express regret for the inadvertent error made by the Malaysian Organizing Committee [MASOC] for the wrong publication of the Indonesian flag," the statement reads.

Khairy has also met with Nahrawi to personally apologize.

Youth and Sport Minister Imam Nahrawi (fourth right) meets his Malaysian counterpart Brig. Gen. Khairy Jamaluddin (fourth left) in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.
Youth and Sport Minister Imam Nahrawi (fourth right) meets his Malaysian counterpart Brig. Gen. Khairy Jamaluddin (fourth left) in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. (JP/Dicky Christanto)

Read also: Felda Evira Santoso wins first gold for Indonesian wushu team

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