Akon is issuing an apology for a series of violent protests that broke out in Sri Lanka due to one of his music videos.
As previously reported several Buddhists protested his “Sexy Chick” video with pop singer David Guetta which depicts a pool party scene with girls dancing around a statue of Buddha.
Protestors unhappy with the video took to the offices of the Majaraja Organization, a broadcasting company that plays the video, where things took a violent turn.
Stones were thrown at the building, four people were injured and vehicles were damaged by the crowd before being dispelled by local police.
According to Akon, he was completely oblivious to the religious symbol in his video and he’s apologizing for unintentionally offending practicers of the religion.
He released a statement saying,
“I was not aware that the statue was even on the set of the video until now. I would never set out to offend or desecrate anyone’s religion or religious beliefs. I myself am a spiritual man, so I can understand why they are offended, but violence is never the answer and I am disheartened to hear about what happened yesterday in Sri Lanka.”
The booking company responsible his upcoming concert in the country, American Talent Agency, has also released a statement canceling his scheduled performance now that the protests caused officials to revoke his Visa.
Due to the recent events that transpired yesterday in Sri Lanka, we have decided to postpone Akon’s upcoming show. We are working diligently with the local promoters to ensure the safety of both our talent and the fans before committing to a new date. Akon is looking forward to performing for the people of Sri Lankaand we hope to have this situation resolved in the coming weeks.”
Akon was scheduled to perform on April 24th.Source
