Afghan's Controversial 'Swimsuit' Contestant rejoins Pageant
Pakistan Times Foreign Desk

MANILA (Philippines): An Afghan woman, condemned in her homeland after appearing in a bikini in a Philippine beauty contest last year, rejoined the pageant Sunday as a judge, saying the controversy bolstered her advocacy for women's rights.

Vida Samadzai, 26, was among 11 judges chosen to pick the winner in Miss Earth, an annual beauty pageant that promotes environmental protection, organizers said. There was no Afghan candidate among more than 60 women vying for the title Sunday.

"It was really helpful by way of expressing my view to the rest of the world," Samadzai, a women's rights activist, said of the attention she got after Afghan officials criticized her for becoming the first Afghan woman to take part in a beauty contest in three decades.

Wears Gown instead of Swimsuit

"I don't know if they'll have a problem this time because I'm not showing any skin or wearing a swimsuit,'' said Samadzai, who wore a gown at Sunday's coronation night.

Recap

In a radical departure from the conservative image of Afghan women, Samadzai paraded in a red bikini down a catwalk last year to qualify for the contest. She failed to make it to the semifinals but won a special "beauty for a cause" award, largely for her women's rights work.

Afghan officials, however, said she betrayed Afghan culture by appearing in the beauty contest and warned she could face prosecution if she returned to her native country.

The Skimpy Attire

Samadzai said she felt uncomfortable in the skimpy attire, but did it to qualify for the contest and raise awareness of the plight of women and children in her homeland. She said she was urged to join the pageant by people aware of her work as a volunteer fund raiser and as a founder of an Afghan women's rights organization.

Samadzai said she has not returned to Afghanistan since the controversy erupted. "I'm not welcomed there, they might prosecute me if ever I go back home," she said.

Selects New Abode

She has stayed mainly in the United States, where she became involved with fund-raising activities and was often invited on talk shows. Her busy schedule has prevented her from returning to school to finish a course in speech communications and international business.

Although unable to return home, Samadzai said she was happy to have helped convince fellow Afghans that they could find a niche in the world as doctors, lawyers, professionals. "I opened a door, I'm happy and I love it."

The Miss Earth Pageant

The Miss Earth pageant, launched three years ago by a Philippine production outfit, requires candidates to be aware of environmental problems facing their respective countries.

Contestants helped clean a beach of trash, did farm work, planted mahogany trees, biked to promote clean air and released schools of fish in a reservoir in the northern Philippines ahead of Sunday's event, organizers said.●