Yahoo – AFP,
December 19, 2015
Baghdad (AFP) - "Some people out there think we don't love life," said Humam al-Obeidi, one of the organisers, as the crowd spilled out of the Baghdad hotel ballroom where the pageant was held.
Iraqi Shaymaa Qasim poses during the Miss Iraq beauty contest on December 19, 2015 in the capital Baghdad (AFP Photo/Ahmad Al-Rubaye) |
Baghdad (AFP) - "Some people out there think we don't love life," said Humam al-Obeidi, one of the organisers, as the crowd spilled out of the Baghdad hotel ballroom where the pageant was held.
The jury
chose Shaymaa Abdelrahman, a tall, green-eyed 20-year-old from Iraq's
multi-ethnic city of Kirkuk.
Iraqi
Shaymaa Qasim waves after winning the
Miss Iraq beauty contest on December 19,
2015 (AFP Photo/Ahmad al-Rubaye)
|
"I'm
very happy to see Iraq going forward," the new beauty queen told AFP as
she tried to fend off a scrum of admirers hoping to clinch a selfie. "This
event was huge and put a smile on the faces of the Iraqis."
Wearing her
sash and holding her bouquet, Shaymaa Abdelrahman was fast learning her new
trade, saying all the right things without ever breaking her smile.
There was
more talking than glamorous strutting during the pageant as the contestants, in
high heels and evening dresses that were sleeveless but below the knee, pitched
their charity projects to the jury.
The pageant
was designed to meet enough international criteria to propel its winner to the
next Miss Universe contest, but some details, such as the Kalashnikov-toting
guard at the door, set the event firmly in Iraq.
The winner
said she would use her fame to forward educational initiatives, especially among
the massive population of people who have been displaced by conflict.
One
contestant said she would try to fix the Mosul dam, Iraq's largest and
reportedly in need of urgent repair work, "because it threatened the
entire country."
'Still
alive'
In the week
running up to the event, the eight finalists embarked on a string of
pre-pageant activities, including the visit of a camp for displaced people in
Baghdad.
Speaking to
AFP during a tree-planting ceremony near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon
on Thursday, Suzan Amer, a 22-year-old from the Kurdish town of Sulaimaniyah
argued that a beauty pageant was more than a mere distraction in Iraq.
"It's
my first time doing anything like this but it's an experience I wanted to be
part of. I think Iraq needs events like these," said the young woman with
ash blonde hair, bright fuscia lipstick and a rosebud tucked above her ear.
Iraq is
wracked by an ongoing war against the Islamic State, the world's most brutal
jihadist organisation, and plagued by deep sectarian tensions and corruption.
But the
pageant, which culminated with the jury announcing the winner as Beethoven's
Ode to Joy filled the ballroom, left participants, organisers and guests
feeling that beating the gloom was part of the war effort.
"I think it is wonderful; it makes you feel things can come back to normal," said veteran human rights activist Hana Edwar.
Iraqi women
taking part in the Miss Iraq beauty contest stand on stage
before the audience
on December 19, 2015 in the capital Baghdad
(AFP Photo/Ahmad al-Rubaye)
|
"I think it is wonderful; it makes you feel things can come back to normal," said veteran human rights activist Hana Edwar.
The last
time the Miss Iraq competition was held was in 1972, when the oil-rich country
was on an upward track.
Old footage
of the contest available on the Internet shows Wijdan Burhan al-Din Suleimank,
at a venue in Puerto Rico, introducing herself at the microphone, between India
and Ireland in the speaking order.
"We
look forward to having a good ambassador for Iraq," said Senan Kamel, the
2015 pageant's artistic director, who also organised Iraq's first fashion show
in years last March.
"What
we're hoping to accomplish is to make Iraq's voice heard, show that it is still
alive, that its heart is still beating," he said.
The fashion
designer was carried out to the car park after nearly fainting from exhaustion
and stress before the show but he was back on his feet and all smiles in time
to vote with the jury and present the winner with her crown.
Congratulations @MariaHarfanti
on an excellent result at the @MissWorldLtd competition!
https://t.co/fHJoTYbYlS pic.twitter.com/tdBar4G81x
— The Jakarta Globe (@thejakartaglobe) December 20, 2015
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