JAKARTA - The manager of the concert arena The O2 in London, England, officially apologized after the Palestinian-flagged T-shirt confiscation incident from two female spectators at a concert by a New Zealand singer, Lorde, which was held last weekend.
This apology drew sharp criticism because the alleged violation of the policy referred to as "misassessment" was almost similar to the case that occurred a few months earlier.
According to The Guardian's report,ctional Humi and Chloe Grace Laws, where the two attended separately at Lorde's concert in the arena, were stopped by security officers The O2 and asked to release a Palestinian FC football T-shirt that reads "Palestinine".
The O2 staff initially claimed that their policy prohibits the use of clothing containing certain names, flags, or national symbols, under the pretext of offending other visitors.
However, Humi and Laws felt that the treatment they received was discriminatory. Through uploads on Instagram, Humi described her experience as something really surprising.
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He recalled how security officers said that the t-shirt he was wearing was dangerous and offensive. "Two security staff explained to us that The O2 does not allow any national football shirt or equipment to be worn inside," wrote Huri.
"We rejected this and I asked if they would ask someone to take off a shirt with a Union Jack picture, and they said yes. Meanwhile, we saw a lot of football-themed shirts/nationals among the crowd," he continued.
Because they refused to take off their T-shirts and were not allowed to keep them in their bags, Huri admitted that he was threatened. "They called the security manager who said I had to take the shirt off or I would be 'expelled' from the location of the event.
Humi was also escorted to the entrance area where the items were "dangerous" to hand over their T-shirts.
Meanwhile, Laws said that a young guard who sympathized with him said that the Israeli flag was also banned at the Haim's concert made up of Jewish musicians at the same location on October 28.
Responding to the criticism, The O2 spokesman in an official statement clarified that the arena does not have policies prohibiting certain clothing items, including those displaying or highlighting social, religious, political, or national issues. They admit that the incident occurred due to a misinterpretation of the policy.
"We are not always right in every decision, and regretfully on this occasion, the 'error assessment decision has been made' regarding two individuals," said the spokesman. "This is the result of a misinterpretation of the policies we have and our escalation procedure is not followed properly. For that, we apologize profusely."
Ironically, the report said that The O2's statement this time included promises to review procedures and training "almost identical to the statement they made last summer.
At that time, a fan of Peter Kay's concert was also barred from entering for wearing a Free Gaza t-shirt, and The O2 promised to review its policies. This unchanged return of promises raises public doubts about arena management's commitments.
Responding to the controversy, Steve Sayer, senior vice president and general manager of The O2, apologized personally to Laws and Humi. He offered to reimburse tickets and expenses that night, as well as free invitations to watch other shows at The O2.
In response, Huri stated that he would donate all these reimbursements to organizations supporting Palestine.
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