THAILAND’S government has declared “underboob” selfies unlawful, punishable by up to five years in prison. However it’s unclear how the law would be enforced, as offenders rarely include their faces in the photos.
For Thailand’s reputation as a sex-tourism destination of ill repute, the country has some pretty regressive laws when it comes to nudity. The 2007 Computer Crimes Act was broad and far-reaching, and bans any material the government feels might “cause damage to the country’s security or cause public panic” and “any obscene computer data which is accessible to the public.”
That underboob selfie could get you 5 years in jail http://t.co/TFnsMEyqtl pic.twitter.com/Waiq4cxvXi
— Cosmopolitan UK (@CosmopolitanUK) March 17, 2015Basically, that means no porn, and in fact a quick browsing of Playboy Thailand confirms that no nudity (nipples and/or genitalia) is allowed. But now, the government has set its sights on a seemingly innocuous trend: the underboob.
The underboob — that is, the portion of the breast below the areola — appears to be a popular form of expression on Thai social media. But now, since it’s apparently “obscene,” selfie-takers have to be careful. Per the Computer Crimes Act, those found guilty of posting the material could face up to five years in jail.
Of course, enforcing the law will be a problem, as the standard protocol seems to involve cropping one’s face out of the picture when boobage is present. The government even acknowledged the difficulty.
#ThaiJunta faces fresh int'l ridicule for "underboob selfie" ban @marieclaireuk: http://t.co/5hq27OTvKs pic.twitter.com/t9s943dOwn
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) March 17, 2015When people take these ‘underboob selfies’ no one can see their faces,” ministry spokesman Anandha Chouchoti told The Guardian. “So it’s like, we don’t know who these belong to, and it encourages others to do the same.”
It’s an interesting tact to take, given that other markers of nudity (nipples, genitalia, pubic hair etc.) are pretty well-defined. But underboob? What’s next, side boob? Can too much cleavage land a woman in hot water in Thailand? Time will tell.
The Thai government threatens up to five years in jail for women who post #underboob selfies. http://t.co/znDOxnxBna pic.twitter.com/hXZp11vdeY
— Maxim (@MaximMag) March 16, 2015
