Myanmar bans map tattoos below the waist

Myanmar citizens have been told that tattooing a map of the country below their waist could earn them a three-year jail sentence. The Mandalay Region Advocate-General also warned that it could attract a fine equivalent to £175 ($300).

U Ye Aung Myint issued the warning in the regional hluttaw on July 8 during the second day of a special sitting to discuss the communal unrest in Mandalay last week. “We can accept this symbol tattooed on the upper part of the body because it might demonstrate the wearer's pride for their country but a tattoo on the lower part disgraces the country’s pride,” he said.



He had been asked by U Thein Lwin (Union Solidarity and Development Party, Pyi Gyi Takhun Township) if action could be taken against anyone with a map of Myanmar tattooed in an inappropriate part of the body. U Ye Aung Myint said anyone with such a tattoo could be prosecuted under the Union Seal Law (2010).

The law is aimed at ensuring that the Union Seal is used "in a proper manner in accord with its prestige.” It protects “the whole or any part of the seal,” and notes “at the centre of the Union Seal is the map of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar.” U Thein Lwin said many youths tattoo their bodies to express themselves. "Although the Myanmar map is an abstract image it has gracefulness and we should prevent such disgrace befalling the country," he said.