- Title: THAILAND: THAI NUDE MODEL URGES ASIA TO REJECT MEAT AND BECOME VEGETARIAN.
- Date: 24th August 2005
- Summary: (L!1) BANGKOK, THAILAND (AUGUST 24, 2005) (REUTERS) 1. FILIPINO MODEL ISABEL ROCES GETTING HAIR AND MAKE-UP DONE (VARIOUS) 2. VARIOUS OF STAFF FROM THE PEOPLE FOR THE ETHICAL TREATMENT OF ANIMALS (PETA) PILING CHILLIES FOR PHOTO SHOOT 3. PHOTOGRAPHERS TAKING PHOTOS 4. PHOTOGRAPHERS AROUND ROCES WHO IS POSING NUDE WITH CHILLIES 5. PAN OF ROCES COVERED IN CHILLIES 6. VARIOUS OF ROCES WITH CHILLIES 7. THE PHOTO SHOOT 8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) FILIPINO MODEL ISABEL ROCES, SAYING: "I was vegetarian since childhood and my mom first converted. We were eating vegetables in the house and I really loved animals growing up. I grew up with a lot of pets and that sort of converted me, my love for them." 9. PHOTO SHOOT 10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) JASON BAKER, ASIA-PACIFIC DIRECTOR FOR THE PEOPLE FOR THE ETHICAL TREATMENT OF ANIMALS (PETA), SAYING: "This is a stunning image to get people talking about a very serious issue. That's animals in factory farms who've spent their entire lives crammed in cages in massive warehouses where at the end of the day they have their throats slit in a violent and painful death. So this is kind of almost light-hearted. It's sexy, it's fun, it's exciting and that's what vegetarianism is." 11. VARIOUS OF ROCES COVERED IN CHILLIES POSING WITH "SPICE UP YOUR LIFE" SIGN Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 8th September 2005 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BANGKOK, THAILAND
- Country: Thailand
- Reuters ID: LVABBPXERW59EN1GKYVIN98GXZ58
- Story Text: A naked model urges Asia to reject meat and become vegetarian in the wake of outbreaks of animal-borne diseases.
With animal-borne diseases making Asian consumers wonder about the
safety of their next meal, an animal rights group is stepping up the call to
shun meat and become vegetarian.
Wearing little more than a smile and a few strategically-placed
chillies, Filipino model Isabel Roces posed for a spicy new ad campaign in
Bangkok on Wednesday (August 24) to promote vegetarianism.
The campaign by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is
calling on consumers across Asia to reject meat in their diets under the
slogan "Spice up your life - Go Vegetarian".
Twenty-five-year-old Roces, who was recently named Fashion Model of the
Year by MTV Philippines, posed with 250 kilograms of red hot Thai chillies to
drive the message home.
"I was vegetarian since childhood and my mom first converted. We
were eating vegetables in the house and I really loved animals growing up. I
grew up with a lot of pets and that sort of converted me, my love for
them," she said.
Manila-born Roces, who has graced the pages of fashion magazines across
Asia, including "Preview" and "Cosmopolitan", says she is
appalled by what she calls the cruel process of meat production, including
overcrowded farms and the pain inflicted on animals by slaughterhouses.
She has been an ethical vegetarian since childhood and has been an
outspoken advocate for animal rights on PETA campaigns for almost two
years.
Jason Baker, the Asia-Pacific Director of PETA, admits the nude shoot
is an unusual way to publicize animals rights but says the organisation wanted
to show consumers that vegetarianism can be a sexy and healthy choice.
"This is a stunning image to get people talking about a very
serious issue. That's animals in factory farms who've spent their entire lives
crammed in cages in massive warehouses where at the end of the day they have
their throats slit in a violent and painful death. So this is kind of almost
light-hearted. It's sexy, it's fun, it's exciting and that's what
vegetarianism is," he said.
Baker added that in addition to saving the lives of hundreds of animals
a year, vegetarians are also less likely to be affected by the spate of
meat-born diseases spreading throughout Asia.
Outbreaks of SARS, bird flu, and most recently, pig-borne disease have
sent alarm bells through the region, where meat is a staple part of the diet.
Roces, whose advertisements are expected to appear in magazines and
billboards across Asia by the end of the year, is not the first celebrity to
campaign for PETA.
In the early 90s the group launched an aggressive anti-fur campaign
featuring supermodels like Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington posing nude
under banners saying "I'd rather go naked than wear fur".
More recent PETA advertisements featured Oscar-winner Charlize Theron
posing with her pet dog advocating fur-free fashion.
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