If you're a Nepalese woman in search of a tiara, the outlook is bleak. The ruling Maoist party has postponed the Miss Nepal contest, set to be held this weekend, for the sixth time this year. In the battle between beauty queens and bureaucrats, oddly their takes on the issue are at once at odds and the same.
The women who were supposed to have been in the canceled pageant say they've been "victimized" by the government's decision. The government says they were trying to stop a practice that they say discriminates against some ethnic groups and demeans women. Specifically, according to the Maoist's most senior woman, it's not fair to shorter, darker women and further objectifies the winners by making them appear in toothpaste and shampoo ads.
To see the women's rights ramifications, read more.
The pageant was set to take place in the army's headquarters given the tumult surrounding it. One of the contestants said the cancelation violates women's rights, saying, "I feel like we are under a dictatorship more than being a republic or democratic." The crux of the argument appears to be whether a beauty pageant can further a woman's skills and lifestyle, or whether being judged on looks is a degradation above all else. That argument, however, may be covering up the growing perception that the Maoist party is puritanical and obsessed with social control.
Whose side are you on? Is it a woman's right to be in a pageant? Is the real issue here government control?
Mulberry
Patrizia Pepe
Francesco Biasia
I think its the woman's right to be in a pageant, if she wants to go through all that rigmarole than let her. I personally dont understand that whole community but if thats the womans goal and choice than go for it.
I dont get how it demeans women.
1i think that it should be the woman's right to choose what they can and cannot do for pageants. i feel like these women are trying to find a way to stand out in a country that has such strict rules, and they are being respectful of a lot of the rules that have been dictated to them. i feel like a pageant doesn't demean women, and it doesn't mean that they aren't respecting their heritage, but just that they are looking for a way to express themselves and perhaps bring some culture to the global arena, since we know that these winners have a chance at the miss universe pageants and things along those lines.
2Ilanac, you took the words right out of my mouth!
3Wow! She looks like the prize orchid at the county fair.
4One of these contestants will thank the Maoists when she runs for VP in 20 years
5In theory, of course a woman should be allowed to express herself in a pageant if she wishes to, but I don't think that's what that senior woman is protesting against. In reality, how do these pageants really turn out? Are the winners really 'saving the world' etc.? No, they usually turn into trophy wives or continue modelling ad/tv/movie work, continuing a glamorous lifestyle. I think that's what is seen as the problem here; in the end, pageant winners are most prized on, and continue to capitalize on, their looks. I think the officials are trying to avoid importing that kind of culture.
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