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Sacha Baron Cohen Will Pay Fine Of Blokes Charged For Wearing Mankinis

Sacha Baron Cohen Will Pay Fine Of Blokes Charged For Wearing Mankinis

Very nice! Local media reported earlier this month that the tourists were arrested and fined in Kazakhstan.

James Dawson

James Dawson

In a heart-warming tribute to the Lord of Banter, Sacha Baron Cohen has said he will pay the fine for six Czech tourists who were arrested in Kazakhstan for wearing nothing but mankinis.

You'll no doubt remember that Cohen popularised the mens one-piece swimsuit in his film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which he played a fictional Kazakh TV presenter.

Local media reported earlier this month that the tourists were arrested and fined 22,500 Tenge (£51) for 'minor hooliganism' and 'indecent exposure'.

However, responding to the news story earlier today, Cohen wrote on Facebook: "To my Czech mates who were arrested. Send me your details and proof that it was you, and I'll pay your fine."

Baron Cohen has been a regular thorn in the side of Kazakhstan authorities since his film was released back in 2006.

The movie was banned and sales of the DVD were also a no-go while the government threatened to sue the British comedian, as they felt the movie represented the central Asian state as racist and sexist.

Credit: PA Images

Yerlan Idrissov, who was the Kazakh ambassador to the United Kingdom at the time of its release, wrote in the Guardian: "We're an easy target. Borat could have been made a citizen of a country with a truly awful human rights record - say Afghanistan during the days of the Taliban. But that would have been risky for Baron Cohen.

"Many Kazakhs who saw Borat were offended and incredulous. But in fact, the country's critics, including Baron Cohen, are more likely to receive an invitation to address their concerns at an all-expenses-paid conference in Kazakhstan than they would be to receive a fatwa."

However, it appears the attitude of officials towards the film has warmed somewhat. In 2012, the then Kazakh foreign minister, Yerzhan Kazykhanov, thanked Baron Cohen for boosting tourism in to the country, saying 10 times more people were applying for visas to go there.

I guess that it's not great having your citizens portrayed as primitive and incestuous, but still, that tourist revenue is 'very nice!'.

Featured Image Credit: 20th Century Fox

Topics: Entertainment, Film and TV, Sacha Baron Cohen, Borat