It seems that Miley Cyrus did not know that flag desecration is an actual criminal offense, and now Mexico wants to see that she's punished for her disrespectful behavior.
Last Tuesday, during the Mexico leg of her "Bangerz" tour, Cyrus started twerking in the middle of a song, with two dancers dancing beside her and using a Mexican flag to spank the gigantic fake butt she was wearing.
As if that wasn't insulting enough, the incident happened on Mexico's Independence Day.
In the United States, Cyrus was able to get away with having fun with the American flag (she wore it as a onesie, a backdrop, and even demolished it, according to the Los Angeles Times) but laws in Mexico are far more strict.
According to CNN, Mexican law is very strict about the use of their flag. So much so, in fact, that their laws state that any action "that implies contempt or lack of respect to the Homeland Symbols will be punished according to its severity and the condition of the offender."
It was also stated in the article that the disrespect for a Mexican symbol "carries a fine up to about $1,200 and three days in jail."
Nuevo State representative Francisco Treviño said via the CNN report, "I felt truly offended and annoyed by the fact that a foreign artist feels like she can come here and make fun of and mock our national flag on Independence Day, September 16th. She brazenly made fun of our flag,"
He added, "It's important to notice that in her second concert Wednesday (also in Monterrey) she didn't desecrate the flag. There were several flags on display at the concert venue, but their use was appropriate. I hope this incident serves to get the message out that we Mexicans don't like it when our flag is made fun of."
This is not the first time that a singer has been under fire for a similar offense. According to the New York Daily, Paulina Rubio got fined in 2008 for wrapping herself in the country's flag.
The LA Times has reported that the Mexican Interior Ministry is investigating the accident, with the legislature unanimously voting to condemn Cyrus's behavior.
Cyrus is still set to have two more performances in Mexico on Friday and Sunday before moving on to Chile and Argentina.