Chinese strip in solidarity after Weiwei porn quiz

DOZENS of Chinese fans of Ai Weiwei are posting nude images of themselves (above) on a blog in reaction to news that the artist is being investigated by the Beijing authorities for spreading pornography.

Weiwei and his videographer Zhao Zhao say they have been quizzed by police over nude photographs the pair worked on, including one of Weiwei and four women. According to Zhao, the police asked: “Don't you know that the photos that you've taken are obscene?”
 
According to The Guardian, Weiwei himself claims that the photographs are neither sexual nor political, but art.

Some of those who have stripped in solidarity for the blog - titled ‘Listen, Chinese Government: Nudity is not Pornography’ - are hiding nothing at all in their photos. It is an extremely rare form of protest in a culture where public nudity remains taboo.
 
Li Tiantian, a Shanghai lawyer who is among the strippers, summed up the message behind the protest. "It is an expression of support for Ai Weiwei and scorn to the Chinese government," she said. "It shows our attitude and anger towards the government's behaviour."
 
This is not Weiwei’s first brush with the law this year; many of his supporters feel this investigation is just the latest example of persecution of the 54-year-old artist.

He was only released from house arrest in June, where he had been held on charges of tax evasion. According to Reuters, Weiwei’s supporters "sent money folded into paper planes that were flown over the walls". ·