Did the Filipinos notice the Philippine flag shown upside down on TV when the camera focused to a guy holding it during the singing of the Philippine National Anthem? The guy in the audience holding the flag could be a Filipino or not, but certainly, it was not the right way to wave the country’s symbol. Knowing that the Pacquiao-Bradley fight was viewed by millions of people around the world, highlighting the flag with the red color displayed on top of the blue, was an epic fail. Displaying the flag with the red on top could only be done when the Philippines is at war with another country or entity.
Assuming that every Filipino knows this rule of the flag, then the guy could be of another nationality who clearly did not know section 10 of the Philippines’ Republic Act 8491 that states how the flag should be flown or displayed.
This incident reminded me of a similar one in September 2010 when the Philippine flag was displayed, alongside those of other ASEAN member-countries, with the red section on top. The photograph below showed Pres. Benigno Aquino III with the wrongly-displayed flag behind him. The U.S. apologized for the gaffe and said that it was “an honest mistake.”
This recent gaffe could be an honest mistake as well. I hope that in future events, anyone who displays a flag from a country not his own, should educate himself first about the laws of the flag. As an example, in the U.S., a flag in an upside down manner (with the union down), means the country is in distress.
While everyone may have the right to fly a flag to show patriotism, it should be known that it has to be respected and treated properly.
Video: Flag gaffe around 0:45s.
