Image via YouTube.
The Dominican Republic is a little more forthcoming on the exact reasons the country banned professional tongue-sticker-outter Miley Cyrus from performing at a September concert. Let's just say the list is more ridiculous than Lady Gaga's going-out attire.
Now in case you missed it, we previously covered reports that Cyrus' Sept. 13 concert in the Dominican Republic had been shut down. At the time, the only reason given was the singer's purported propensity to, "undertake(s) acts that go against morals and customs, which are punishable by Dominican law."
Thanks to a Dominican Today report, we have more specifics on what exactly officials had issue with as it pertained to the 21-year-old singer. As you will soon see, comedy is far better when it's specific.
The National Commission for Public Performances (CNEPR) reportedly explained their decision was due to the following issues:
"As well as performance with inappropriate dress, corruption of language, images and perverse phrases, phrases with double meaning, apology for crime, violence and acts that degrade civic culture, incitement to sex, lesbian sex and use of inappropriate objects in public, acts that offend personal safety and violate the rights of children and adolescents, there are many reasons put forward by the CNEPR through its president JM Hidalgo."
My favorite line might be "phrases with double meaning," which means you could be locked up if you ask the flight attendant for more warm nuts while taxiing in the country.
Aside from that, the list is you average, run-of-the-mill overreaction peppered with homophobic declarations. Also, we must warn against the "use of inappropriate objects in public," which we assume is a direct reference to skinny jeans.
Now I would never champion anyone actually seeing a Miley Cyrus concert, which you can see from the video below is a lot of flopping around and gyrating, essentially what we believe most sea park shows feature. Still, this is one of the last countries you would think would shot call to this level.
As the Associated Press reported back in 2013, the Dominican Republic is hardly the hotbed of innocence: "Prostitution has long been practiced openly in much of the Dominican Republic but the trafficking of people for the sex trade, both within the country and overseas, has become so widespread that the government believes it must now impose controls on the industry, Attorney General Francisco Dominguez said."
This was during a sex-trafficking crackdown that took place in the country at the time. We assume the country eventually solved all sex-trafficking issues before it decided to make twerk cleanup a high priority.
A Miami Herald report from Ezra Fieser quotes a local who stated, "Prostitution is everywhere here; on the beach, in the bars, in the clubs. This place runs on it."
We would imagine this behavior would fall under the profoundly phrased, "incitement to sex" listed by the CNEPR.
Incidentally, we recommend working that phrase into your next date night, asking your significant other if you might squire them for an exquisite burrito dinner as an incitement to sex.
As for Cyrus, the country gave the singer a media gift wrapped with a nice long bow of hilarity. She will continue to wear skimpy outfits and people will pay to see it, because that's their right.
As for tourists visiting the Dominican Republic, you are seemingly free to do as you like. Just don't rent an arena and charge people to see your performance, because that's apparently when officials decide action is needed.
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