The 51st national day logo competition winner Anuar Dan has conceded that his creation was ‘inspired’ by a logo used by the Taiwanese government for its trade awards.

copy taiwan logo and merdeka 51st celebration logo fiasco 280808 04“It was used as a reference during my research,” said Anuar when contacted by Malaysiakini.

Yesterday, Malaysiakini was notified by a reader that Anuar’s creation bore a strong resemblance to the Taiwan Excellence Award logo - used by the Taiwanese Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) and Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) for several years already.

Anuar stressed despite his references to the Taiwanese logo - which is a registered symbol - he has incorporated many original ideas into his eventual design.

50 percent borrowed

This included the rounded edges along the six lines, the large dots used in the middle and the use of three colours of the Jalur Gemilang, the Malaysian flag.

copy taiwan logo and merdeka 51st celebration logo fiasco 280808 05“At most, I borrowed 50 percent (from the Taiwanese logo).

"If one was to use 100 percent of another person’s design, that would be unacceptable,” he said.

Anuar said that his creation, which resembled three figurines crossing hands, was suitable to represent the spirit of national day as it symbolised national and racial unity.

His national day logo was selected from 800 entries in a government sponsored competition. Anuar was awarded RM10,000 for his work.

Anuar, 48, has been an artist for 25 years and was a former officer in the National Art Gallery.