Zhang Ziyi Topless
When actress Zhang Ziyi was photographed on a beach without a bikini top in early January, the scandal lasted for days in the Asian press – at least the tabloid parts of that press, which include sections of the Singapore Straits Times, the local paper of record. Pictures of Ms. Zhang on the beach (in bikini bottom and top) appeared and people fulminated about how decadent and western was her behavior. Asians must retain their modest culture! Meanwhile internet searches for the topless pictures clogged Web traffic for several days.
So into this little brouhaha came a couple of nudists, walking down the outdoor-cafe-laden streets of Holland Village, an ex-pat enclave. This couple walked down and up one and a half blocks, then vanished from view after chatting with a couple of customers eating at a cafe. Again the fulminations in the op-ed pages: let these foreigners leave their nakedness at the borders!
Prostitution is not illegal in Singapore, nor is it discussed in hushed tones or hidden from view. So why all the worry about nudity? Is it that sex is an indigenous industry but nudity is an import? Or perhaps that sex generates income but nudity doesn’t?