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Woman told to remove personalised number plates due to rude Filipino translation
An Australian woman was told to remove her personalised number plates which bear her nickname 'Kiki', following a complaint that the word is Filipino for a part of the female anatomy.
Kristen Perry was given the nickname Kiki as a baby in relation to her Greek heritage Photo: Kristen Perry
By Bonnie Malkin, Sydney 12:44PM BST 20 Apr 2011
Kristen Perry, known as Kiki by her friends and family received a letter from the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) in New South Wales demanding that she show "just cause" for using the plates, otherwise they would be confiscated.
The RTA said it had received a complaint from a member of the Filipino community because Mrs Perry's nickname Kiki translates to "vagina" in Tagalog.
"At first I thought it was a joke, but then I realised it was actually quite serious and that my number plates would be taken off me if I didn't respond appropriately," Mrs Perry said.
She said she was given the nickname Kiki as a baby in relation to her Greek heritage and had no idea of its other meaning. She was given the personalised plates as a gift from her husband five years ago.
Her family was also surprised when she told them the translation, she said.
"I rang my father last night and said: 'Do you know you have been calling me vagina all my life?'," she told her local paper, the Newcastle Herald.
"He just said 'What?' He was appalled."
After a wave of public support for her cause, the RTA backed down, saying it would take a "common sense approach" to the matter.
However, it issued a warning that "personalised plates must not carry offensive language, religious or sexual content".
