An Instagram influencer with more than half a million followers has responded to criticism at her recent photo shoot, lying naked on top of an endangered Sumatran elephant in Bali.
Alesya Kafelnikova, 22, originally shared a video of the February 13 recording on Instagram, according to The Sun. A few days later, she uploads another photo of herself with the elephant along with a caption: “To love nature is human nature.”
Alesya Kafelnikova apologized to everyone who considered her actions ‘vulgarity’
(Newsflash)
But among the many fans who liked Kafelnikova’s photo, a number of critics influenced the importer of a critically endangered animal that was likely to be transported to Bali for tourism purposes – including a group campaigning for the rescue of Asian elephants.
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“Another tragic trivialization of the majestic Asian elephant when the species fights for its existence against cruel abuse in tourism and human ‘entertainment’,” Save the Asian Elephants (STAE) wrote in a statement shared to The Sun is. On Twitter, the group took the recording of Kagelnikova beyond a “crude stunt to exploit and humiliate Asian elephants for commercial gain. ‘
The Bali tourism agency also peeked in and told The Sun that Kafelnikova’s video “certainly does not meet the standards we promote as part of tourism in Bali.”
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A representative of the Bali Tourism Board was not immediately available to comment on the dispute to Fox News.
However, Kafelnikova has since defended her photo in a later Instagram position, claiming that she does charity work and donates money to support the elephant and the residents of the town where he lives. The influencer, also the daughter of Grand Slam award-winning tennis champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov, added that she never intended to offend, and offered her apologies.
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“It is a pity that people see it as vulgarity, and not as a beauty and love of nature,” she wrote. “I love animals, I love elephants! And I love Bali so much! I hope each and every one of you will evoke an aesthetic love for my post and the beauty.
“It was a private photo shoot, I had no intention of harming the feelings of local people at all. We like Balinese culture and respect the Indonesian rules. Sorry to see anything else in this. My intention with these photos was to show you that I love and respect animals and especially elephants more than anything. ‘