Is this a thing? Nude photos at religious sites?

[Cicero]

Apparently five people have been arrested within the last month after posing for nude pictures in and around the temples of Angkor Wat.  Is this some sort of thing?  Apparently the two Americans were mooning the camera but it seems as if the three French people were having some sort of photo shoot.  I have a hard time imagining someone thinking it would be a great idea to pose nude on the altar at St. Peters. 

US sisters arrested for nude photos at Cambodia's Angkor

Two American sisters have been arrested in Cambodia for taking naked photos of each other inside the country's famed Angkor temple complex, officials said Saturday -- the latest nude stunt by tourists to spark anger.

Lindsey Adams, 22, and her 20-year-old sister Leslie were discovered taking "nude pictures" inside the Preah Khan temple at the world heritage site on Friday, the Apsara Authority -- the government agency managing the Angkor complex -- said in a statement.

"The two tourists admitted that they really made a mistake by taking nude photos," the statement read.

It is the second time in the last fortnight that tourists visiting the sprawling temple complex have been caught without their clothes.

Three French tourists were deported last weekend after they pleaded guilty to taking nude pictures of each other inside another temple within the complex.

Chau Sun Kerya, a spokeswoman for the Apsara Authority, said the women's actions were offensive because Angkor is considered sacred ground.

"Perhaps they did not know Angkor is a holy site. But their inappropriate activities affect the sanctity of the place," she told AFP.

Keat Bunthan, a senior heritage police official in northwestern Siem Reap province, said officers were now questioning the women.

"They lowered their pants to their knees and took pictures of their buttocks," he said, adding that he was not sure yet what charges they might face for their action.

The three deported French men received a suspended six-month prison sentence on two charges -- public exposure and making pornography -- and will be banned from re-entering Cambodia for four years.

The trio were caught just days after a series of photos of Asian women posing nude at ancient Cambodian temples went viral online and outraged officials who vowed to step up efforts to prevent similar stunts.

The Angkor Archaeological Park, a world heritage site, contains the remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire, dating from the 9th to the 15th centuries, and is Cambodia's most popular tourist destination.


finance.yahoo.com/news/us-sisters-arrested-nude-photos-cambodias-angkor-063400599.html

[ttt]

WTF is wrong with people??

Have fun in Cambodian prison, though!

[alleinesein]

This was also a big issue at Machu Picchu
www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/11/machu-picchu-naked_n_4944573.html

[thejackpot]

What the heck is wrong with folks? Why would that be a thing?

[katfco]

Wow, what is it about the ancient temples, practicing Buddhist monks and nuns, and occasional people begging who've been crippled by landmines that made them think, "Ooh! Nudist selfie!"