THE model on this billboard is supposed to be advertising a sexy bikini, but an outraged vandal has given her a ‘burkini’ makeover.
In the original version of the poster, which advertises a GBP3.99 bikini top from high-street fashion retailer H&M, a scantily-dressed model stands on a sun-kissed, white sand beach.
But in what is thought to be an act of outraged vandalism, someone has taken a can of black spraypaint to the image and given the blonde beauty a more modest ‘burkini’.
Covering her eyes, torso and most of her legs, the messy daubing only leaves the model’s arms visible.
But the graffiti ‘artist’ hasn’t stopped at covering the model’s breasts, and the sinister spraycan artist has also painted over her eyes.
The freestanding advertising unit, stands in the Balsall Heath area of Birmingham, which has a large Muslim population.
Across the road from ‘Muslim Students House Masjeed’, a learning centre, the poster is next to a busy main road.
The fact that almost all of the model’s flesh has been covered has led local residents to speculate that the vandalism was not random, but a possibly religiously-motivated targetted attack.
Delivery driver Robert Tonkins, 45, said: “You see a lot of women wearing the hijab around here, and what’s been done to that poster looks very similar to it.
“I don’t think it’s just kids messing around – they’ve spray-painted specific areas and covered up anything that might be offensive to very religious people.
“It’s a bit worrying, I don’t think it’s up to other people to decide what can and can’t be displayed on our streets, especially because we’re a Christian country.”
Some strict Muslims believe that women should not expose any of their flesh in public, except for their hands and eyes.
