When travelling to different places and experiencing unfamiliar cultures, we are bound to find certain things fascinating. And in that fascination, sometimes we may unknowingly offend some people.
However, what is important is owning up to our mistakes and sincerely apologising, like this French traveller, Alwin who recently apologised for a video he made of him pretending to be the Sultan of Kelantan.
The video which has now been deleted was titled, “Introducing the NEW KING of Kelantan Malaysia” and showed Alwin on a balcony with his arms wide open, as if he was greeting his “subjects”.
According to Alwin in his apology video, there were 2 types of people who responded to his earlier video: those who found it funny and those who got offended.
He addressed Malaysians who were offended by the video by saying that he had no idea that matters pertaining to the royal institution were sensitive.
“I sincerely apologise. I had no idea that it was a sensitive topic to talk about.”
“I know that religion is a sensitive topic because something had already happened before. I was talking during azan. So I understood that, but I didn’t know anything about the sultan,” he said.
“So, if you got offended or if it hurt you, that was definitely not the purpose of my video. I will make sure my next videos pay attention to these things.”
Alwin also reminded everyone that mistakes such as his are very common when one travels a lot and experiences different cultures.
He thanked Malaysians for following him on his travels around Malaysia from the first day he landed in Alor Setar, Kedah.
“I’ve received so much love on each one of my videos, so when something like this happens, I don’t want it to be misunderstood.”
He also asked his followers to comment topics that may be sensitive and should be avoided as he only wants to “share good vibes, make (people) laugh, make (their) day and inspire (them).”
Watch the full video below:
@alwingc This is for everyone I have offended on my last video about the King of Kelantan. I sincerely apologize, I am so grateful for all the love I’ve had so far in Malaysia and don’t want this to be misunderstood. Love y’all
Everybody makes mistakes- what is important is learning from it and becoming better.
Also read: French Traveller Goes Viral Among Malaysians On TikTok; Video Of Him In Kedah Has 4.8 Million Views
