Indonesian first lady sorry for Instagram outbursts

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Indonesia’s first lady apologized Wednesday, January 22, to her hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers after a series of angry outbursts on the smartphone photo-sharing service.

Ani Yudhoyono has attracted around 310,000 followers since joining Instagram in April but has regularly caused a stir by lashing out at people who post critical comments under her photos, many of which are of her family.

But on Wednesday she sought to turn over a new leaf with her followers on the Facebook-owned service, apologising and urging people to continue sharing “stories and memories”.

“I would like to thank all my followers for their encouragement, support and interactions on my Instagram account,” the 61-year-old wrote on her account, beside a picture of a white flower.

“If I had said anything that seemed offensive or unfavorable to some of my followers, then I do apologize. Let us continue to share our stories and memories through photographs on Instagram.”

Her latest outburst was just last week after someone criticised her for posting a photo of her grandson, saying she should instead be focusing her attention on floods striking many parts of the country.

“Why is the anger directed at me?” she wrote, saying people should also be asking what the wife of the Jakarta governor was doing as floods engulfed the city.

Last year she was upset when someone posted a comment critical of a picture of her and her family posing on a beach wearing traditional Indonesian “batik” shirts.

The poster said the shirts, considered formal attire, were not the right choice for a day out at the beach.

“Your comment is so stupid,” Yudhoyono responded angrily.

Her apology had attracted more than 4,000 likes and 300 comments within an hour of it being posted Wednesday.

She is not he only member of her family active on social media – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono regular posts on Facebook and Twitter, which is wildly popular in Indonesia. – Rappler.com