Thailand’s Culture Ministry says foreign tourists should be barred from getting Buddhist tattoos while visiting because the practice is culturally insensitive.

Culture Minister Niphit Intharasombat said in a statement that his ministry has been receiving complaints from residents that tattoo parlours are etching sacred images of Buddha and other religious images onto the skin of non-Buddhist visitors across the country.

“Foreigners see these tattoos as a fashion,” Mr Niphit said in the statement posted on his ministry’s website today. “They do not think of respecting religion, or they may not be aware” that it can be offensive.