50 pole dancers on Jeeps escort politician’s funeral procession

Europa

January 6, 2017 3:58 PM

Videos of the funeral procession have since been circulating online showing a troupe of skimpily-clad female pole dancers dancing on top of jeeps in the southern city of Chiayi.

The dancers were part of huge funeral procession for local councillor Tung Hsian

Fifty pole dancers riding on top of luxury vehicles on Tuesday saw a Taiwanese politician off to the afterlife in a bizarre public funeral ceremony in the East Asian nation.

Pop music with the lyrics ‘Shake it for me’ can also be heard blaring from speakers.

The funeral was for local politician Tung Hsiang, who died last month.

The family of the deceased said they wanted to honour Mr Tung, who loved "having a lively fun time."

His brother Tung Mao-hsiung told Taiwanese broadcaster CTS that "He [the late politician] told us he wanted this through a dream two days before the funeral."

The politician’s funeral procession took two hours and brought traffic to a standstill in the city centre.

The procession had a drumming troupe and a marching band, with some of the performers dressed as deities and giant puppets.

Locals were also seen lining the route to pay their last respect and enjoying the spectacle.

Other residents praised Mr Tung and his family for providing an entertaining afternoon for them.

However, experts say hiring dancers and even strippers for funerals is not that strange in parts of Taiwanese society, where some practise a folk religion that believes in "entertaining" spirits.

Mr Tung, a local councillor, was a well-known figure in the city who has been active in politics for decades.

He died from an unspecified illness at the age of 76 in December.

Europa