By: Jennifer P. Rendon
IN A BEACH setting, when is wearing a bikini considered inappropriate or lewd?
A photo of a Taiwanese woman made the rounds on social media on Thursday after she was seen wearing a two-piece suit that barely covered her private parts while in Boracay Island in Malay, Aklan.
The 26-year-old tourist, who was with her Taiwanese boyfriend, was wearing the string bikini while casually walking in the beachfront, seemingly unmindful of the stares she got.
Again, she was photographed strolling on Puka Beach in the revealing attire.
The Malay Police Station did not name the woman upon request of the Boracay-Inter Agency Task Force.
The police reacted after her beach outfit became the talk of the town, or rather the island. They approached the woman and her boyfriend and brought her to the police station.
Police Major Jess Baylon, Malay police chief, said they explained to the Taiwanese tourists that the woman violated Section 5 of Municipal Ordinance 203.
The woman couldn’t speak much of English, thus her boyfriend became her interpreter, Baylon said.
“What she did was more of public indecency. We later issued her a citation ticket,” he said.
The citation ticket meant a P2,500 fine for the lady.
Municipal Ordinance 203, Series of 2003 is “An Ordinance Regulating the Activities of Mobile Photographers Practicing Their Trade or Calling Within the Territorial Jurisdiction of Malay and Providing Penalties for Violation Thereof.”
Section 5 of the ordinance stipulates that “taking lewd and/or excessively erotic pictures is prohibited.”
In her case, she was the one being photographed. The woman paid the penalty without any fuss.
The Taiwanese claimed she and her boyfriend were models. She appeared to be shocked when told of her “violation.”
“She told us that’s how she expressed herself. She didn’t know she was violating something,” Baylon said quoting the woman.
She added, “I’m so confident about myself. It’s just normal for us.”
Baylon admitted that there’s a gray area on what the woman did because they usually accost women who go topless or nude.
The woman and her boyfriend arrived Oct. 8 and stayed in a posh hotel in Station 1 until Oct. 11 before flying out of Aklan.
Meanwhile, police are also investigating those who took the woman’s photos and uploaded them to social media.
Baylon said the person or persons might be charged for violating the ordinance.
