Flags flying at half mast is an act of the state, which is generally used to express the grief and condolences of the people of the whole country when some important people die, major unfortunate events or serious natural disasters occur. During this period, flags of all public places in China and flags of embassies and consulates abroad should be flown at half mast.
Flags flying at half mast is a popular way of mourning in the world today. When an important leader of a country dies, flags will be flown at half mast to express condolences to the deceased. The process is to raise the national flag to the top of the pole, and then drop it from the top to about one-third of the pole.
This practice was first seen in 16 12. One day, the captain of the British ship "Harz Ise" was unfortunately killed while exploring the channel from northern North America to the Pacific Ocean. To show respect for the late captain, the crew lowered the flag at half mast to a distance from the top of the flagpole. When the ship sailed into the Thames, people saw its mast flying at half mast. I don't know what this means.
When asked, it turned out to be in memory of the dead captain.
By the second half of the17th century, this funeral method had spread to the mainland and was adopted by various countries. It is not difficult to see that the flag has been flown at half mast for nearly 400 years since ancient times.
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Flags flying at half-mast to express condolences is a normal thing and an international practice, which is followed by many countries.
However, the size of the world is always different. According to the influence of religion, customs, policies, environment and other factors, there are still two countries in the world that are different. No matter what happens, flags will never be flown at half mast to express condolences.
I. Saudi Arabia
The reason why Saudi Arabia can't fly the flag at half mast is because the flag of Saudi Arabia is printed with halal language, which is determined by religious culture.
The flag of Saudi Arabia was launched on 1980165438+1October19. On the background of the green flag, a famous saying of Islam is written in Arabic of the white trinity: "Everything is not the Lord, only God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God". There is a white treasure knife painted below.
Green symbolizes peace, is the most sacred color in Islam, and is also a symbol of Islam. The use of this color on the flag surface of the national flag indicates that Saudi Arabia is an Islamic country.
The famous sayings of the Koran on the banner once again highlight the special position of Islam in Saudi Arabia.
A white nod symbolizes that you will not hesitate to wage jihad to defend the honor of Islam and the country, and white also represents purity.
Because truth is the core of Islamic belief, the national flag is sacred and serious in Saudi Arabia's eyes. Therefore, there are some special regulations, such as not flying flags at half mast and not using them on commodities; When making a good national flag, it is necessary to accurately check whether there are any mistakes in the text; In order to prevent the characters from being upside down when viewed from the back, it is necessary to sew two flags back to back and use them as one side.
Therefore, since the flag of Saudi Arabia was put into use, it has never been lowered at half mast to show its condolences. Look at the flags of other countries flying at half-mast, while the flag of Saudi Arabia is still flying in the wind.
At the beginning of 20 15, when Abdullah bin Abdalasis, the former king of Saudi Arabia, died, flags were not flown at half mast. Wahhabis believe that flags should be flown at half mast in absolute compliance with God's will, otherwise it will be regarded as blasphemy. The king is the master of power in Saudi Arabia, and his position is supreme. When he died, the national flag was not lowered at half mast. It is conceivable that Saudi Arabia has supreme respect for the national flag.
Second, the Republic of Somaliland.
Somaliland was once called "British Somaliland" and was a British protectorate. 1 On June 26th, 960, the region became independent as the Lanzhou of Somalia, and then merged with the independent Somaliland of Italy on July 26th,1to form the "Somali Democratic Republic".
199 1 After the collapse of the central government in Somalia, the Somali national movement immediately took control of the northwest of Somalia, and on May 8 of the same year, 18 declared the northwest of Somalia an independent "Somali Republic", which it considered to be the successor of the previously short-lived "Somali State", but it was not recognized internationally.
The flag of Somaliland was put into use on June 1996+ 10/4, 2004. It is composed of green, white, red and black. Green represents prosperity, white represents peace and purity, red represents the blood of heroes who fell for liberation, black represents the end of the dream of reunifying Somalia, and the truth in the national flag represents Islam.
Because there is a Muslim saying in the national flag, Somaliland, like Saudi Arabia, has no system of flying the flag at half-mast, and will never fly the flag at half-mast.
In their eyes, Allah is very important, and the soul of Islam cannot be trampled on in the slightest.
References:
Baidu encyclopedia-flag flying at half mast