Miss Universe Indonesia: Contestants allege sexual abuse

A number of Miss Universe Indonesia candidates have registered police complaints accusing organisers of sexual abuse.

The contestants had been requested to take off their tops for “physique checks” and pictures two days earlier than the finals on 3 August, certainly one of their attorneys stated.

The organisers allegedly advised the ladies that they had “to look at any scars, cellulite or tattoos on their our bodies”.

“I really feel that my rights have been violated,” one of many contestants stated.

“It has affected me mentally. I’ve had bother sleeping,” she stated, talking to the media, alongside different complainants, earlier this week. Native tv blurred their faces within the broadcasts to guard their identities.

Mellisa Anggraeni, a lawyer who represents three of the contestants who complained, stated many others will come ahead.

Police in capital Jakarta issued a press release saying they might examine additional. The Miss Universe Indonesia Organisation will examine the allegations, its proprietor superstar Poppy Capella stated in a press release. The worldwide Miss Universe Organisation additionally stated it was trying into the matter and that it takes allegations of sexual impropriety “very severely”.

Whereas physique checks are regular within the nation, contestants usually are not often requested to strip bare, stated Maria Harfanti, a former Miss Indonesia. She added that organisers additionally typically ask for the contestants’ BMI or physique mass index to verify their physique proportions.

In Monday’s press convention, one the complainants stated that the physique checks had been completed in a closed room, however there have been some males additionally current. The door was not utterly shut, giving individuals exterior a view, she added.

Whereas magnificence pageants have lengthy been allowed in Indonesia, organisers are cautious to not offend conservative sections of the society. In 2013, the Miss World pageant cancelled its bikini spherical when it was staged within the largely Muslim nation.

Miss Universe, which is now on its 73rd version, is fashionable in South-east Asia, particularly in Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, the place winners go on to turn out to be celebrities and social media influencers.

Its proprietor Anne Jakrajutatip a Thai transgender lady and media mogul, who has sought to revamp the model to make it extra inclusive by permitting married girls, transgender girls and single moms to compete.

Pijar Anugerah is a reporter with BBC Information Indonesia