Vladimir Putin’s political movement is furious about an anime cosplay festival for teens

Source: Region51.com

The Murmansk branch of the All-Russia People’s Front (ONF), a movement in Russia started in 2011 by Vladimir Putin, is demanding an investigation into a local festival dedicated to anime “cosplay” (costume play). The festival, ONF representatives say, was of a “provocative nature,” as several of the young participants wore rather strange-looking, very revealing outfits.

The event at the center of this scandal is the Kinki Anime-Fest, which took place on April 18 in the town of Kola. According to the local news agency Region51, the members of the ONF’s Murmansk branch are apparently unaware that the participants’ costumes were based on beloved fictional characters, like Emporio Ivankov, from the manga series One Piece, and the Naʼvi race from James Cameron’s Avatar.

ONF representatives have expressed concern that some of the participants who wore particularly revealing costumes were underage, reminiscent of a recent scandal in Orenburg, where a dance school was shut down, after revelations about a concert that featured several dozen young women “twerking” in skin-tight bee costumes. 

“Who allowed half-naked teenagers to parade around on stage at the local recreation center? The center is run by the local government! Where were local officials looking while this was going on, and why didn’t they intervene during dress rehearsals?” asked Vladimir Maltsev, the co-chairman of the ONF’s Murmansk regional branch.