KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 — The nine Australians who stripped down to their briefs emblazoned with the Malaysian flag went “too far”, according to a local lawyer who had acted in a similar case.
Ronny Cham, who is not acting for the nine Australians, indicated that they may not be let off easily as the national flag is a symbol of sovereignty and the monarchy, even though they may not have intended insult.
“Unfortunately, they have gone a little too far.
“The national flag is a sacred emblem representing not only sovereignty of the nation but also the King,” he was quoted saying by UK paper The Guardian.
The yellow colour of the crescent and the 14-point star in the Jalur Gemilang flag is the colour representing Malaysia’s monarchy.
Cham had represented four tourists that had last year stripped naked at Mount Kinabalu's peak in Sabah, who were then fined RM5,000 and sentenced to three days' jail from the day of their arrest, before being deported the next day on July 13.
The four were charged under Section 294(a) of the Penal Code for public indecency, an offence which is punishable by a maximum three months’ jail term or fine or both.
Cham said the nine Australians' case would be different from his clients' case, noting that the link of last Sunday's incident with the Malaysian flag may affect their case.
Last Sunday, nine Australian men, aged between 25 and 29, who were nabbed for public indecency and for allegedly disrespecting the national flag after they stripped to their briefs in public at the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix at Sepang.
The Guardian said the nine were celebrating the win by Australian F1 participant Daniel Ricciardo.
Sepang police have said the nine will be remanded for four days from October 4, with authorities reportedly indicating that they may be charged or deported.
Following the incident, Australian paper The Age reported Australian deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce as saying that the men “shouldn’t have done it”, but believed their actions were motivated by stupidity rather than malice.
