WILLisms.com: South Korea: Wear Bikini, Get Discount.

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South Korea: Wear Bikini, Get Discount.

This is the most unintentionally funny news story I have read in quite some time (underlining mine):

SEOUL (AFP) - A local government campaign to attract more bathers to a South Korean beach resort by offering incentives to swimmers wearing bikinis has upset women's rights activists.
Ahead of the peak summer bathing season, Buan County administration southwest of Seoul renamed its Byeonsan Beach Bikini Beach and promised wearers of skimpy swimsuits a 10-percent discount on bills for hotels, meals and beach equipment rentals.

The county put up wall posters with pictures of bikini-clad beauties and the inscription: "Show off your beauty and get a 10-percent discount."

Women's groups denounced the campaign as exploitation.

"This is an outrageous attempt to stimulate the regional economy by exploiting the female sex," said a statement from the association of women activists of North Jeolla Province.

A campaign to attract more visitors should focus on publicizing the southwestern county's "natural beauty instead of the naked female body," it said.

"We are appalled at this preposterous campaign and cannot suppress our mounting anger," it said.

But officials at the Buan county office were unrepentant and said by telephone that they had no plan to stop the campaign.

"I don't understand why they are so angry. This is just part of a publicity campaign aimed at promoting the name of the Bikini Beach. We have no intention to exploit or commercialize the female sex," an official told AFP.

It really just speaks for itself.

Posted by Will Franklin · 12 July 2005 10:26 PM

Comments

When I wear a bikini at the beach I get arrested. Guess I need to move to South Korea: the land of sunshine and impending chemical attack.

Posted by: Micah at July 13, 2005 01:52 AM

Dear Will,
lol. I love it. Ya know, men should be the ones protesting if anything. Do you get a discount? No. Never. Not in a bar, and now not on the beach! You poor things. :)

Posted by: Rosemary at July 13, 2005 02:56 AM

I hear they have offered to pay Rosie O'Donnell not to wear a bikini!... As A matter of fact they have made her an offer to not show up at all...

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at July 13, 2005 10:07 AM

Do they all have to wear the same bathing suits?

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at July 13, 2005 01:10 PM

I'm with Zsa Zsa. I mean, talk about feeding a stereotype... they DO all look alike.

Posted by: Barbara at July 13, 2005 08:26 PM

Thanks Barbara!...BUT?... Do you also think they should give a little something to that man for showing a nipple?

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at July 14, 2005 07:37 AM

Wanted: Fewer shrill womyn's groups, more cute Korean women in bikinis! Pithy enough?

Posted by: Scott at July 15, 2005 06:40 PM