PAS Youth wants pageant organiser to drop 'Miss/Mrs'

 

PAS Youth has demanded that the organisers of the Miss/Mrs Plus Malaysia (MPWM) pageant drop the words "Miss/Mrs".

This followed a meeting between PAS Youth and MPWM 2020 chief executive director Ziinine A Britshi yesterday.

Ziinine told Malaysiakini that PAS Youth believed this was necessary because some MPWM participants are Muslims.

"They informed us about a fatwa, that Muslims are not allowed to participate in beauty contests," he said.

He said that the PAS delegation said an alternative was for MPWM 2020 to change its name to, for instance, "Malaysia Plus World Icon" or drop the 10 Muslim finalists.

In view of this, Ziinine said he would be seeking the advice of the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.

PAS Youth's representative at the meeting, Akram Ikrami Taib Azamudden, told Malaysiakini that a fatwa made beauty pageants "haram" (forbidden).

However, Akram said, PAS Youth was aware that the purpose of the event had a positive message.

"PAS treats women fairly, regardless of race, religion, or gender. We will also help those who are discriminated against," he said.

Thousands joined the pageant's audition on Oct 27 and 24 participants were eventually picked for two categories - Miss Plus and Mrs Plus.

Four Miss Plus finalists are Muslims while there are six Muslim Mrs Plus finalists.

The winner of the contest will be competing at the Miss Plus World Finals 2020-2021 in the United States in February.

According to Ziinine, MPWM 2020 should have multi-ethnic participation because the event was about humanity, fraternity, and women empowerment.

"We want all plus-sized women in this country, including Muslims, to be treated equally," he said. - Mkini