Becoming a state of undress?

Hot topic: Picture of the woman walking in bikini bottom in Kota Kinabalu city centre that went viral on social media.

“I WANT to visit Sabah,” a Frenchman based in Singapore told me when I met him last week in Petaling Jaya.

“Great!” I said, as the Land Below the Wind is my home state and it is blessed with awesome tourist destinations. “How did you find out about Sabah?”

“I saw a story about a Chinese tourist wearing a bikini bottom in Kota Kinabalu and I was curious about Sabah. I Googled it and it is beautiful,” the 30-something Frenchman said.

The images he saw was of beautiful beaches and the magnificent Mount Kinabalu.

The story he was referring to was about a photograph, that had gone viral, of a female tourist believed to be from China who was wearing just her bikini bottom and a long-sleeved pink T-shirt while she was on the streets of Kota Kinabalu city.

“What did you think about the woman wearing a bikini bottom?” I asked the Frenchman.

“I’m European. And for us, that is normal.

“You can find people wearing a bikini on our streets. You won’t find such stories in our newspapers,” he said.

“But we’re also changing. We’re getting to be more conservative.”

Later that night, I had an appointment with a Japanese researcher in Kuala Lumpur.

An hour before our dinner meeting, the 40-something Japanese WhatsApp-ed me: “Can I come wearing casual attire?”

This was my third time meeting him. And I was amused that he was so polite and formal in asking permission to not wear a suit as he had done previously.

If he were a Malaysian, I would have answered using the Sabah slang, “Buli bah kalau kau (Can bah if it is you).” Instead, I replied, “Definitely, can.”

He appeared wearing a long-sleeve shirt and corporate trousers. His definition of casual was different from mine.

Since he used to work in cosmopolitan Tokyo, I was curious to know what he thought about the bikini controversy.

“Not appropriate. You don’t wear a bikini in the city,” he said.

I got a mixed reaction from the French and Japanese on the bikini controversy that got Sabahans riled up.

Their different reactions are not surprising.

I had posted the pix without the bikini pixelated on my Facebook page and the comments from Sabahans (and Malaysians) were diverse.

“Ini kali la hahahahaha (This is the time),” commented Denny.

There were those who scorned the fashion choice.

Some were worried that their state would become Sabah “Darul Bikini”.

Benedict: “I don’t think this is our cultural norm. What’s next after that? Locals kissing in public? Is it acceptable?”

Dennis: “Sigh. Please dress modestly, people.”

Ita: “Uncouth behaviour”

Jose: “This is a bit too much lah. Although we are open-minded, I doubt this could pass the law on indecent exposure???”

Apolion: “Not appropriate lah bah. But then is tuan punya badan punya hak (But that is the right of the owner of the body).”

However, there were those who were blase about it.

Gordon: “Quite common in Europe to wear bikini on the road.”

Johnny: “I really don’t know what’s the problem. Go to Taiwan and Thailand. It’s a common sight.”

Chu: “If they have infringed the law, charge them, else, just let it be.”

Sean: “Progress!”

Brian commented: “Culture shock for some Sabahans.”

“Padahal dulu kita mandi telanjang di sungai (Though, in the past Sabahans use to swim naked in the river),” I said.

“Those were the carefree and innocent days, bro,” he said.

In those days, in the 1970s and 1980s, the boys in Kampung Pogunon in Penampang near Kota Kinabalu would be swimming naked in Moyog River while I would be wearing my shorts.

Back then nobody shamed them about nudity. That was how it was. Now that we are civilised, we have become too modest.

Back then a mother could breastfeed her baby without being shamed. Back then my aunties could be topless at home.

Terence: “Human beings used to be naked. Now the people are going back to that point to complete the circuit.”

Muhd Isa: “Lebih baik dari telanjang (Better than being naked).”

Some called for tolerance.

Rita: “Got to tolerate this la as Sabah is a tourism spot.”

“Look away bah,” I replied, echoing what Transport Minister Anthony Loke told PAS MPs in Parliament if they feel stewardess uniforms were too menjolok mata (provocative).

Wan Shamsudin: “If PAS members saw it, they would faint.”

“Look away bah,” I wrote.

Laurence added: “I’ll just keep looking.”

Some offered explanations as to why they thought the woman wore a bikini bottom at the time.

Michael: “Many are from Jesselton Point back from the island. This is already something normal bah.”

Martin: “Many take the ferry to islands. Bikini is anyway bikini lah.”

Kota Kinabalu is famous for its Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park. There are five islands located about three to eight kilometres from the city. Most of the tourists go by boat to the islands via Jesselton Point.

The sight of women wearing a bikini is common in Semporna Darul Surreal, which is in the conservative part of Sabah.

The town is the gateway to gorgeous islands and the world-famous Sipadan island.

It is so surreal to see bikini-clad foreign tourists and island kids sniffing glue in the town, which resemble a dilapidated town in the southern Philippines.

With more and more tourists going to Sabah, soon my state will be Sabah Darul Bikini.