Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Trivia Question: What country's flag has an AK-47 on it?

Trivia Question: What country's flag has an AK-47 on it?

Take a moment to think about it....

....keep thinking....

...seriously, there really is a country that has an AK-47 pictured on its flag...

...give up?....

...here's the flag....


...still can't figure it out, right?...

The answer is...

Mozambique.

Yes, Mozambique's national flag has a picture of an AK-47 on it. According to wikipedia the Kalashnikov assault rifle's image on the flag is supposed to symbolize the nation's struggle for independence.

So what does this have to do with Hanoi? Well, since Hanoi is the capital of the country lots of heads of nations come here to meet with the government. Whenever a foreign dignitary comes to town, the city drapes the country's flag on every lamp post near Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and the Prime Minister's house. The other day I was driving in that neighborhood and saw dozens of flags with an AK-47 on them. I was immediately confused thinking that no country would have an AK-47 on their flag. Clearly I was wrong.

According to Wikipedia, Mozambique had a national contest in 2005 to change the flag and get rid of the AK-47. I guess nobody won the contest because it is definitely still very much part of the flag. I'm not a PR guy by any means, but personally I don't want to visit any country with an AK-47 on their flag.