Postponed Beyonce gig "deliberately sabotaged"

The postponement of R 'n' B singer Beyonce Knowles' concert is now being seen as a calculated sabotage by some parties to protect their own interests.

The claim was made by industry sources after Beyonce postponed the concert, which was to take place on October 18 at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil.

"Beyonce and her team have been given a misinformed picture about Malaysia to scare her away," New Straits Times Online quoted a source as saying.

The source also said that the scenario was stickier now because it had become a cutthroat competition to put one country on the world entertainment map.

The dress code and Pas Youth protests played a minor role in this ruthless game, the source added, "but they helped fuel the fear".

Beyonce's management, Music World Entertainment/Columbia Records, issued a short statement on October 22 on her official website regarding the "indefinite postponement" of her Sunday concert.

"The entertainer remains respectful of the people and cultures of all nations and holds the fans of Malaysia in highest regard," it stated, without elaborating further.