Instagram caption: Look who was talkin dirty to me! #Thailand #nightlife
A few short days after pop star Rihanna publicized her picture with some endangered primates on Instagram (IG), CNN Travel reported that two Thai men are now in police custody as a result of the said photo session.
According to a Sept. 23 report on CNN’s website, Rihanna’s photo with the loris – an endangered primate native to Southeast Asia – posted on her account (@badgalriri) sparked controversy. The outrage following the posts was understandable considering it is illegal in Thailand for anyone to charge tourists money for such activities with endangered animals.
Thailand has a long-running issue with protecting endangered primates like baby gibbons and the slow lorises, some of which are being used by locals to attract tourists who would pay for photos with them. This is an activity that wildlife groups have reportedly been trying to curtail for decades now.
Posted online on Sept. 21, Rihanna’s loris photo bore the caption: “Look who was talking dirty to me! #Thailand #nightlife.” To date, is has over 230,000 “likes” on her page.
Based on her other Instagram posts, Rihanna had been on the island at Phuket Fantasea and, as per reports, she had also been to Bangla Road where she was believed to have taken that photo with the slow loris.
She had also been photographed interacting with a herd of elephants. Posting the pictures online. These photos also received some negative comments from her own fans.
Instagram caption: They all hail Empress when She walk by
Still, with her tweets and IG uploads, Rihanna might have actually sparked revitalized efforts in stopping these so-called louts from peddling primates-for-photos to paying tourists.
Instagram caption: Haaa! They love da girl
According to Phuket News report on Sept. 21, Kathu District Chief Veera Kerdsirimongkol had ordered an investigation on the incident, urging a close look at Bangla Road anew. He was quoted as telling the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Kathu Superintendent to “Please investigate and prosecute, as per your authority and duty.”
The Daily Mail reported that the day following Rihanna’s IG post, Phuket police reportedly raided Bangla Road. Despite the apparent difficulty in apprehending the louts due to spies that act as their lookouts, the authorities were able to apprehend two of them – reportedly a 20-year-old man and a 16-year-old boy – and confiscate two lorises as well.
More, it said that the two could face charges of possession of protected animals with a penalty of up to four years in prison and a 40,000 baht ($1,300) fine. It also reported that the lorises would be taken to a national park in Phang Nga.
Brushes with endangered animals aside, based on Rihanna’s Sept. 21 Twitter posts, the singer also apparently went to a sex show that left her “traumatized.” Phuket News reported that they had also alerted Chief Veera about these tweets, who responded that sex shows are not just “completely against the law” but also “ruin Phuket’s image.”
Chief Veera told the news outlet that he has always ordered his officials to “be strict and work to control these sex shows.”
Rihanna, of course, was in the region for the Asian leg of her “Diamonds World Tour,” which also saw the hitmaker perform a one-night concert in Manila on Sept. 19 and an appearance at the 2013 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix on Sept. 22.
Will Rihanna’s primate photo op put people in Jail?
Source: Mb.com.ph (September 23, 2013 at 06:43PM)
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