Miss Mexico, Alma Andrea Meza Carmona was crowned the new Miss Universe in the grand finale of the annual beauty pageant, which was held earlier today (Monday, 17th May) in Hollywood, Florida.
During the final round of the competition, the 26-year-old beauty queen was asked on what would be the best method in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic in her home country if she was the leader.
Final questions are here! The first to go is Mexico. #MISSUNIVERSE
LIVE on @FYI from @hardrockholly in #HollywoodFL pic.twitter.com/sJGneKgLYX
— Miss Universe (@MissUniverse) May 17, 2021
https://twitter.com/MissUniverse/status/1394125260203728898?
“I believe there’s not a perfect way to handle this harsh situation such as Covid-19. However, I believe that what I would have done was to call for a lockdown, even before everything was that big because we lost so many lives,” Meza told the panel of judges.
The first runner-up of the pageant went to Julia Gama from Brazil, while Miss Peru, Janick Maceta, became the third runner-up. Miss Myanmar Thuzar Wint Lwin meanwhile managed to snag the “Best National Costume” category following a heartfelt shout-out to her home country, which is currently in the midst of a political crisis.
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘 | 69th Miss Universe Best in National Costume goes to Myanmar!#MissUniverse #69thMissUniverse #MissosologyBig5 #PageantsThatMatter #RelevantPageants pic.twitter.com/vUWCdtMkfa
— Missosology (@missosology) May 17, 2021
Speaking of Miss Universe, Miss Universe Malaysia 2011 Deborah Henry took to her Instagram to call for Muslim women to be allowed to participate in beauty pageants. According to the TV personality, the responsible parties need to “reevaluate the rulings” in order to enable equal rights for all women to participate in such competitions.
“Why can’t Malaysian Muslims join Miss Universe? If it’s the bikini part, they can wear full covered bodysuits. Isn’t that a solution to the fatwa? 2021! It’s time for all women to be able to represent Malaysia on the Miss Universe stage,” Deborah wrote.
Do you agree with Deborah’s statement right here? The 35-year-old posted another update on IG, clarifying what she said.
She wrote, “I asked this question on pageant participation because many women I know whom I call friends who happened to be born as Muslims actually really want to participate and represent their country. Many have been doing so in other ‘arenas’, but for some reason a few selected beauty pageants are banned. And I do believe these individuals should have the right to CHOOSE. And guess what? These individuals would join tomorrow if there wasn’t a ban. I respect that many do not agree with my position on this.”
“To all the women who read this, I respect your rights to defend your beliefs and opinions. But shouldn’t we all respect other people even if their opinions are different? I’m not questioning anyone’s faith. I’m engaging a conversation about a woman’s right to choose for herself – to make her own decisions based on her beliefs and principles. Why should you or anyone else tell her otherwise,” she ended her post.
Source: MMO.
