The Muslimah World Pageant

For many years Islamic groups have been opposed to the annual Miss World Beauty contest, probably because the niqabies and hijabies, never qualify for the contest. This is most likely due to the fact that you can't actually see their beauty through their veils, and last we checked these contests have little to do with personalities.

This year the Miss World competition is being held in Indonesia. In response some of the nation's Islamic have devised a solution in the form of their own pageant. This Wednesday the first ever Muslimah World contest will be held in Jakarta, the nation's capital.

“Muslimah World is a beauty pageant, but the requirements are very different from Miss World - you have to be pious, be a positive role model and show how you balance a life of spirituality in today’s modernized world,” according to the contest founder, Eka Shanti.

20 Muslimah World finalists out of 500 entries were chosen in online selection process. The process itself involved reciting the Quran, and anecdotes of how they can wear their headscarf, which obviously is a requirement for the show.

The competition finalists hail from Muslim countries such as Bangledesh, Iran, Nigeria, Malaysia, Brunei, among others. Sadly it seems none of our Egyptian sisters have made the cut. 

The aim is to prove that young Muslim women, in Islamic garments, do not have to show their hair and bare shoulders to be considered beautiful.

“We don’t just want to shout ‘no’ to Miss World. We’d rather show our children they have choices. Do you want to be like the women in Miss World? Or like those in Muslimah World?” said Shanti, according to AFP.

Doesn't seem the pious event has done anything to quieten the anti-Miss World cognoscenti. The protests have forced the organisers to move the event from Jakarta to Bali, and drop the bikini from one of its rounds. Protesters have gone as far as burning effigies of the organizers and have called the contest “pornographic”.