A Nigerian, Obabiyi Aisha Ajibola, tearfully prayed and recited
Koranic verses as she won a world beauty pageant exclusively for Muslim
women in the Indonesian capital Wednesday, a riposte to the Miss World
contest that has sparked hardline anger.
The 20 finalists, who were all required to wear headscarves, put on a
glittering show for the final of Muslimah World, strolling up and down a
catwalk in elaborately embroidered dresses and stilettos.
But the contestants from six countries were covered from head to
foot, and as well as beauty they were judged on how well they recited
Koranic verses and their views on Islam in the modern world.
After a show in front of an audience of mainly religious scholars and
devout Muslims, a panel of judges picked Obabiyi Aishah Ajibola from
Nigeria as the winner.
Eka Shanti, who founded the pageant three years ago after losing her
job as a TV news anchor for refusing to remove her headscarf, bills the
contest as “Islam’s answer to Miss World”.
“This year we deliberately held our event just before the Miss World
final to show that there are alternative role models for Muslim women,”
she told AFP.
Aisha received 25 million rupiah ($2,200) and trips to Mecca and India as prizes.
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