The wife of Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was criticised today for calling a commenter on an online photo-sharing service “stupid”.

Kristiani Yudhoyono made the remarks after a follower commented on a photo she posted on Instagram showing her and her family wearing traditional batik clothes on a beach in the East Java district of Pacitan, the birthplace of her husband.

“Batik is now worn everywhere, not only at official functions, but also at semi-official events, event for leisure,” an Instagram user who goes by the user name @erie_nya wrote.

Kristiani, who is an avid user of Instagram and has posted hundreds of her photographs, apparently took the comment as criticism and replied.

“Oh my God, your comment is very stupid,” the First Lady fumed.

“Didn’t it occur to you that we were on an official visit and stopped briefly at the beach as we were passing by?”

“Don’t you have better things to say?” she added.

Some Indonesians, on both Instagram and social media site Twitter have come to her defence, but others said her remarks were over-the-top.

“Maybe the First Lady needs to be educated about the correct use of social media. Pity the people,” another Twitter user going by the name @jungjawa said.

A deputy chairperson for Susilo’s Democratic Party defended Kristiani’s remarks.

“Why can’t she speak her mind?” Nurhayati Assegaf was quoted as saying by the Kompas daily. “She should be commended for showing that she’s just an ordinary human being.”

- dpa