Irreversible and dangerous eye tattoos now legal in NSW
THEY won’t let you get a drink after 3am in Sydney — but the Baird government is quite happy to let you get your eyeballs tattooed.
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THEY won’t let you get a drink after 3am in Sydney — but the Baird government is quite happy to let you get your eyeballs tattooed.
In a move that may make your eyes bulge, the state government is regulating eyeball tattooing — the stomach-churning procedure where ink is injected into the whites of the eye, permanently colouring it.
The procedure is completely irreversible and is being brought under public health regulations that ordinary skin tattooists, body piercers, acupuncturists and others must comply with to counter the risk of infection.
“In order to ensure that premises that carry out eyeball tattooing comply with the infection control provisions of the Public Health Act and Regulation, the Public Health Regulation was amended to include eyeball tattooing within the meaning of skin penetration procedures,” said a NSW Health spokesman.
Eyeball tattooing has been around for years but really caught the public’s eye when, in 2012, convicted criminal Jason Barnum appeared in an Alaskan court with his right eye tattooed black and a skull-style tattoo across one side of his face.
Images of Barnum were published around the world, inspiring copycats.
Serious risks surround eyeball tattooing — including the possibility of blindness — and it has been outlawed in at least two US states.
The decision by the Baird government — which is facing mounting criticism over lockout laws enforcing 3am last drinks in the CBD — to regulate eyeball tattooing appears to be a response to an increase in the procedure’s popularity.
Tongue tattooing, tongue piercing and colonic irrigation have been brought under the same laws.
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Opposition health spokesman Walt Secord said regulating eyeball tattooing was a “major stuff-up” and said it should be banned. It wasn’t illegal before — but was also not specifically regulated.
“It is absolutely ridiculous,” Mr Secord said.
“Injecting ink into your eye is a recipe for disaster. Doctors have advised that they are very reluctant to undertake any procedure involving eyes and the Baird government should not be regulating this area.
“Eyeball tattooing should be banned outright in NSW.”
US-born body modification expert Luna Cobra, who has worked extensively in Melbourne, claims to have invented eyeball tattooing and outlines the potential risks from ill-trained practitioners.
“Without the proper education, training, experience and guidance … practitioners have caused vision impairments like blurred vision, spots or floaters or even blindness,” he warned on his website.
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