10 arrested for 'pornographic dancing', Latest World News - The New Paper
World

10 arrested for 'pornographic dancing'

This article is more than 12 months old

Cambodia has arrested 10 foreigners for "singing and dancing pornographically", the police said yesterday, as the kingdom cracks down on racy behaviour at popular tourist sites.

The group, who could face up to a year in prison on pornography charges, was due in court after police made the arrests on Thursday at a villa in Siem Reap, the town connected to Cambodia's famed ancient ruins of Angkor Wat.

Ms Duong Thavry, chief of the Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Department in Siem Reap, said some of those arrested were expats and others were tourists who had been in the country for several months.

"We cracked down on them because they committed activities that are against our culture," she said.

Cambodia's national police said on its website that the authorities had arrested six British nationals, two Canadians, one New Zealander and one defendant whose citizenship was not identified.

The post showed photos of pairs simulating various sexual positions at a party.

But several people in the lewd images do not appear in the group shot of the 10 defendants later posted by the police.

The authorities said dozens of tourists were let go after being informed of their inappropriate actions.

Britain's Foreign Office said it was in contact with the British nationals arrested, though it said the number was five, not six.

In recent years, the authorities have clamped down on visitors posting revealing images of themselves at the nearby temple sites.

In 2016, the management said it would bar tourists wearing skimpy clothes.

The Angkor Archaeological Park, a world heritage site, is Cambodia's most popular tourist attraction, receiving millions of visitors each year. - AFP