Jakarta – Dangdut singer Zaskia Gotik was reported to the Jakarta Police on Thursday for allegedly insulting Pancasila, the five principles of the national ideology, and Indonesia's Independence Day.
Zaskia was reported by a group called the Corruption Supervising Community, which said it had decided to file a report against the singer over her alleged insulting statements in a television show recently as a "deterrent effect".
The singer reportedly made the insult when she appeared as a guest in a television show. The host of the show asked her several questions; one of them was the day of Indonesia's Independence. Zaskia answered August 32, instead of August 17, which caused the audience to burst out laughing.
The host also asked her what the symbol of the fifth principle of Pancasila was. Zaskia answered "bebek nungging" or duck twerking, whereas the answer is rice and cotton symbolizing social justice.
Zaskia has apologized, saying she did not mean to insult the nation's symbols, but the group said the legal process should continue.
"Personally, I accept her apology but the legal process should go on," head of the group M. Firdaus told reporters at the Jakarta Police headquarters. "Because Indonesian people have been insulted."
Zaskia could be charged with violating Law No. 24/2009 on insulting the nation's symbols, with a maximum penalty of five years behind bars.