October 12, 2019, 06:31 PM
A female Taiwanese tourist has been fined 2,500 Philippine pesos (S$66) for wearing a bikini that a Filipino police official has called "literally a string" at Boracay beach, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.
She reportedly wore two differently-coloured versions of the bikini: one in white on Oct. 9, and a red one the next day.
Netizens driven to search for photo in response
Suffice to say, it appears that the news has triggered a strong surge of interest among many when news of it went up on The Straits Times.
Screenshot from The Straits Times Facebook
Screenshot from The Straits Times Facebook
Screenshot from The Straits Times Facebook
Screenshot from The Straits Times Facebook
Brought to the police's attention because she caused a stir
That the tourist should have caused a stir is unsurprising, considering that it was the spread of her online photos that brought her to the attention of the Filipino police in the first place, according to the Inquirer.
Initial circulation of her photos from Oct. 9 eventually caught the attention of the the Boracay Inter-Agency Rehabilitation Management Group on the same day, which then decided to direct the island's police to the matter.
The tourist and her boyfriend were eventually brought to the police station on Oct. 10 at 5:30pm.
Tourist did not see any issue with her outfit
Boracay police chief Major Jess Baylon said the tourist told the police that she did not see anything wrong with her outfit, the Inquirer reported.
Moreover, she considered the bikinis as "a form of expression and of feeling comfortable with her body", and further added that she normally wore it in Taiwan.
No law that actually bans the wearing of skimpy swimsuits
As such, given that the authorities could not find an existing law banning the wearing of skimpy swimsuits, a fine was meted out on the law of banning "lewd" photographs instead.
The couple subsequently left Boracay on Oct. 11 as they had planned after paying the fine.
Screenshots from The Straits Times Facebook page and Jec Ko YouTube
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