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Law cannot touch bare-breasted women’ This woman chose to go topless with nothing but hearts painted on her breasts as she looked on at the parade of bands on Ariapita Avenue, Port-of-Spain, on Carnival Tuesday. A police officer, at right, also takes in the action.

Photo: Keith Matthews

By Denyse Renne

Women masqueraders who bared their breasts during Carnival did not break the law, Assistant Commissioner of Police Winston Cooper said yesterday.

“Technically, the law does not pertain to women when it comes to indecent exposure,” Cooper explained.

In response to public complaints about women who either wore pasties over their nipples, painted their breasts or did both as they paraded, or in one case stood on the sideline as a spectator, Cooper said their nakedness was not an offence.

As the law now stands, “it is the behaviour behind being naked which is the offence,” Cooper said.

As an example, Cooper spoke of a woman being naked in a bar and woman who walked down the street naked.

If both naked women are using obscene language or dancing in a lewd manner they will be charged for these offences, and not indecent exposure.

It was only a few weeks ago that Cooper, speaking to reporters and photographers at a workshop hosted by the Media Association of T&T, advised performing artistes and their back-up dancers to tone down their stage performances which were described as obscene conduct.

Even so, even what is obscene needs to be more clearly defined in the law, which Cooper believes should be amended.

“This is the dilemma we find ourselves in when it comes to obscenity,” he added.

Cooper said the police can only act in accordance with Section 51 of the Summary Offences Ordinance, Chapter 11:02.

What Section 51 says

“Any person who during their presentation or performance of any play, concert or musical entertainment in any building or place to which the public is admitted or has access is indecently attired, performs any lewd or suggestive dancing or actions, in any play, sound, ballet or speech uses language or makes use of any recording which is profane, indecent or obscene or which is insulting to any individual or section of the community and acts in a manner calculated to hold up to public ridicule or contempt any individual or section of the community can be liable to a fine of $400.”

©2003-2004 Trinidad Publishing
HHHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMM :angel1

Nipple pasties, topless, what is the difference? According to Faye Ann... "Freedom... Carnival...is bout freedom..."

I don't see breasts as obscene, many parts of the world women can go topless, that's good for A and B cups though, my C-cups will not be bouncing around for carnival. (OUCH)

__________________
"If u put a small price on ur value.. rest assure that the world wont raise ur price! Love U 2day!" ~ Rev. Run

"If you keep believing in yourself and seek enthusiasm inside your soul, things will get simpler, more spontaneous." ~Paulo Coelho

"Knowledge is like the wind, once you obtain it, you can go anywhere." ~Yellow Hare(Native-American Chief)

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit
the floor each morning the devil says:
"Oh Crap, She's up!"

That's what I was thinking...if you have tiny breasts or implants that won't bounce around do it....but natural C cups and above, will be ina mess

Dancer, gotta agree with that and I gonna keep my business in the corsetts they need.

I aint got no problem with women playing titty mas, as long as it is tasteful. No nipple flashing, no lewdness.

I Ah trini in Sweden salute u girl.... It's women like u who push de country forward.... If ah had de breast fuh it ah would ah do it too...

well I don't like it it look like Trini heading toward Brazil mas

PUSH THE COUNTRY FORWARD......... SO IN SWEDEN PEOPLE DOES WALK THE STREET NAKED OR WHAT?
MAS IS CULTURE AND CREATIVITY WHAT PART OF DAT IS NUDEITY
PUSH THE COUNTRY FORWARD ..........PLEASE LIKE ALL THE CANIBALS AND PEADOPHILES IN EUROPE IS A SIGN OF ADVANCEMENT.:

Neo one... with a reply like that ah could only assume yuh is ah trini/westindian man. All allyuh do is lay ban on women in the west indies.... if yuh want to cast yuh net wide... check out de crime rate an de amount ah crimes commited for dis year aready... it higher dan what we have in sweden fuh de whole year... now could dat be because everyone is give the right to express dey self de way dey see fit? Women who want to should be allowed to... an dat doesn't give MEN or women de right to harrass and or rape. Who it hurtin when women do as dey please... not u not anybody who complainin in here... so jus chill an enjoy de show breddah

peace:angel1

darling it has been so for the past 10+ years.....

I so if we done there... why not.. plus man could play mas bare back....

Well, it is funny, we boast the "Greatest Show on Earth" and we got that title without, bare breast, nudity or leud behaviour.

Why take Trinidad to levels of RIO or Mardi Gras. Next we will be on the "Girls Gone Wild" videos - is that something to push forward for?

As I said in another post. Trinidad is a beautiful, sexy place filled with amazing men and women. We don't need to bare our nipples or private parts to make that point.

LEAVE SOMETHING TO THE IMAGINATION!!!!!!!

"ALL ALLYUH DO IS LAY BAN ON WOMEN IN THE WEST INDIES"
GIRL I AM A TRINI AND LAST TIME I CHEKED IN TRINIDADWOMAN IS BOSS AND THAT ENT NO LIE, YOU GETTING TIE UP IN SWEDEN YOU TALKIN TRINIDAD.. NOT AFGANISTAN. I OR NO MAN I KNOW IN TRINIDAD NEVAH LAY BAN ON ANY WOMEN YET ALL I SAYIN IF SWEEDS COULD UNDERSTAND TRINIDADIAN ISSHOWIN YOUR TITS COULD NEVER TAKE A SOCIETY FORWARD AND TRINIDADIANS ARE VERY SKILLED AT EXPRESSING THEMSELVS IT HAVE AH CRO CRO IN SWEDEN TO?
IF SWEDEN DOH HAVE A HIGH CRIME RATE GOOD FOR THEM ....I WONDER IF IT HAVE ANY POOR PEOPLE THERE
.
WHEN EUROPEANS WENT TO AFRICA AND SEE ALL THEM NAKED AFRICANS WHY DID THEY CALL THEM SAVAGES?
AFRICA MUST BE THE MOST SOCIALLY ADVANCED PLACE IN THE WORLD. NO WONDER THEY TAKE IT AND CUT IT UP
SO PEACE TO YOU SISTAH, AND ALLL THE TIT SPORTING CRIME FREE HIGHLY ADVANCED SOCIALY AND MORALY FREE SWEEEDISSHH PEOPLE . AND I HOPE YOU LOT OVER THERE DONT START SHAGGING SHEEP

Girlchild... You sound like Neon one with that comment... Carnival is not for imagining what masqueraders have under their costumes. I should we went past that stage at least during the 80's. It's 2004 now and we should not be so smallminded. With thoughts like these comming from women, criminal minds tend to believe they have a right to do as they wish with women...

FREE YOUR MINDS....

I don't see anything wrong with nudity either, but is it really fair to compare what is done in one land (europe) to what should also be done and found acceptable in another (west indies)? if the two cultures do not have the same view on nudity then i find it difficult to accept that the same rules apply. in other words, it may be common place and acceptable for women to bathe topless in certain countries, however that is not the norm in Trinidad. Unfortunately, we live in a sexist society where a woman prancing around topless or near so will not be viewed as displaying her natural beauty, instead it will be turned into some kind of freak show and she will be given the respect equal to that given to a common stripper

MY MIND IS FREE:angel1
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND PEOPLE DONT IMAGINE WHATOTHER PEOPLE HAVE UNDER THEIR COSTUMES .....WELL IN T&T AT LEAST .............DOH KNOW ABOUT SWEDEN.

AND NO BODY IS SMALL MINDED BECAUSE THEY DONT HAVE YOUR POINT OF VIEW..........BUT IT IS SMALL MINDED TO JUDGE THEM AS SUCH IF THEY DONT.