Will Saudi Arabia send a candidate to Miss Universe?

Some will consider it a sign of the liberation of women’s bodies, while others will consider it evidence of their alienation from reactionary laws. Maria Jose Onda, international relations coordinator at the organization owned by the Thai group JKN Global, told AFP that the Miss Universe committee “is currently conducting a rigorous process to select a potential candidate for the franchise in Saudi Arabia.”

She added that a decision is expected to be issued “very, very soon,” and it is “possible” that the Gulf Kingdom will have a representative for the next edition of the competition scheduled to be held in September in Mexico.

The participation of Saudi Arabia, a very conservative Islamic country, especially regarding women, in this international beauty contest, if confirmed, would be part of the kingdom’s desire to improve its image. The world’s largest oil exporter has long been associated with the oppression of women due to the extremely strict rules imposed on them.

Despite progress, women’s rights are less than men’s rights

The birthplace of Wahhabism, a strict interpretation of Islam, Saudi Arabia has launched societal reforms in recent years, under young Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, easing restrictions on women and opening its economy to entertainment, with the almost stated goal of attracting tourists and investors. Women have gained the right to study, obtain a passport, travel and work without a guardian’s permission, and even drive a car on their own, but the Personal Status Law, which came into effect in 2022, still contains discriminatory provisions against them, in particular. The fact that only men can file for divorce and, even separated, have superior parental authority over children.

At the end of March, a model from Riyadh, Rumi Al-Qahtani, caused a stir on social media when she announced to hundreds of thousands of her Instagram subscribers that she was “honored” to be chosen to represent the Kingdom in the Miss Universe contest. . Less than a week later, Miss Universe called the letter “false and misleading” and claimed that no selection process had been conducted in the country yet.

At her home in Riyadh, where she lives with her mother and sister, Romi Al-Qahtani confirms that the competition organizers contacted her. “The Miss Universe Committee contacted me to represent Saudi Arabia (…). “We are still negotiating and I hope this will lead to a happy ending,” she said in an interview with Agence France-Presse.

However, the Miss Universe procedure stipulates that a competition is organized in Saudi Arabia by the national representative to designate the person who will go to Mexico to represent the Kingdom. Maria Jose Onda said: “We do not know why (Al-Qahtani) announced her candidacy, but if she wants to participate in the competition in Saudi Arabia, she will have to go through the same selection process as all the other candidates.”

France already knows its future representative in the elections that will be held at the end of next September in Mexico, and he is the person of Indira Ambiot, Miss France 2023. She will take over the task to succeed Diane Lear, Miss France 2022, who was unable to qualify during the coming period. Top 20.