Burmese Bikini Model Draws Heat

Some Burmese critics have taken issue with Honey Oo (aka Hazel Moe), a part-time model living in London who has publicity photographs of her in a bikini on the Internet, saying that the images are not appropriate for a Burmese woman. The photographs appear on the website of her modeling agency (www.purestorm.com).

Honey Oo, who was previously a child model and has posed for magazine covers while in Burma, moved to London when she was 16, where she is studying business management and was spotted by a local modeling agency. She’s now working as a sales adviser and modeling part-time.

“Swimsuits may not be appropriate in Burmese eyes,” Honey Oo told The Irrawaddy. “I have received many e-mails criticizing me for wearing them. I just want people to consider that I am creating art and doing a job.”

The role of models in Burma has become a bigger issue following changes in the print media and the production of TV commercials. A Rangoon-based model, Chan Chan, however, said that modeling is still frowned on by many in Burma’s social arena.

“For example, if a dress made by a designer for a catwalk is not familiar to Burmese eyes, people will not like it,” she said. “Obviously, the way a model dresses is not the same as any other female artist. Because of the way we have to dress, people should pay less attention to culture while judging us.”