The Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta PHOTO FROM KLN.GOV.MY
KUALA LUMPUR—Malaysia on Monday condemned violent protests by Indonesians at its diplomatic premises in Jakarta and summoned its envoy to the foreign ministry to register its concerns.
Malaysia’s decision to recognize two traditional north Sumatran musical items – the Tor-tor dance and the Gordang Sambilan musical ensemble – as part of Kuala Lumpur’s heritage sparked anger in Indonesia.
On Friday some 50 protesters hurled stones and pieces of wood at Malaysia’s cultural center while others threw eggs into the compound of the Malaysian embassy and burned a Malaysia flag, according to reports.
The protesters accused Malaysia of stealing their culture and music.
“Malaysia views with serious concern the acts of violence against Malaysian diplomatic premises and provocative comments on Malaysia by certain quarters in Indonesia for the past few days,” Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said in a statement.
He added that an Indonesian security guard at the cultural center was assaulted by several protestors.
Anifah called for the “aggressive and provocative acts” to end.
The predominantly Muslim neighbors share a common culture and historically many Indonesians have migrated to Malaysia but disputes between the neighbors are not new.
A 2007 disagreement over the use of a folk song that originated in Indonesia’s Maluku islands in a Malaysian tourism advert caused a fallout while stories of alleged mistreatment of Indonesian workers by their Malaysian bosses have caused public anger for years.