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People are sharing this poignant photo to show how we police women's swimwear

Pictures of armed police forcing a woman to remove some of her clothes on a beach in France have caused a controversy on social media.

Gianluca Mezzofiore

on August 24, 2016

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Pictures of French armed police making a woman remove some of her clothes as part of a ban on the full-body swimsuit - also known as burkini - have caused a backlash on social media.

SEE ALSO: The real dangers of banning the burkini

Authorities in several towns in the Mediterranean coast have started to implement the ban on the garment, citing security concerns and disrespect to "good morals and secularism."

The images show at least four armed police officers confronting a woman who was lying on a beach in Nice, on the shore of the famed Promenade des Anglais -- the site of last month's terror truck attack in which 86 people were killed.

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After the police arrive, the woman is photographed removing a blue long-sleeved shirt and one of the policemen appears to take notes or write her a ticket.

These photos come after the spokesperson for the Federation of Muslims of the South, Feiza Ben Mohamed, posted a video showing a woman being forced out of the water by a policeman, even though she was just wearing a hijab.

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People on Twitter started comparing the controversial behaviour of French police to that of law enforcement in the early decades of the 20th century, when "Sheriffettes" were appointed to monitor bathing suit-length laws.

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The photo on the left depicts "Smokey" Buchanan, from the West Palm Beach police force, measuring the bathing suit of Betty Fringle on Palm Beach, to ensure that it conformed with regulations introduced by beach censors.