Indonesia protests against vacuum cleaner ad airing in Malaysia that says ‘fire your maid’
Malaysian firm's pitch for vacuum cleaner seen as 'utterly insensitive' to workers
Indonesia has formally protested to the Malaysian government over a vacuum cleaner ad it says is "utterly insensitive" to the hundreds of thousands of its citizens working as maids in the country.
The ad by the Malaysian distributor of RoboVac automatic vacuum cleaners declared "Fire your Indonesian maid now!", according to versions that have been seen on social media.
The flap emerged just as Indonesian President Joko Widodo arrived yesterday for an official visit, his first since being elected last year.
"The ad by the private company Robovac is utterly insensitive and demeaning to the people of Indonesia," the Indonesian embassy in Malaysia said.
The embassy said it sent a formal protest note to Malaysia on Tuesday.
"We urge Malaysian authorities to ban the ad," it said, adding that it was considering further legal action against the company.