Jakarta Globe, Rebecca Lake, September 18, 2013
 |
In this handout photograph released by Miss World on Sept.16, 2013 the
130 contestants from the Miss World 2013 beauty pageant pose at the GWK
cultural center in Bali on September 13. (AFP Photo/Miss World) |
Outraged
Miss World organizers and human rights activists have condemned the Indonesian
government for its lack of support for the event, saying the last-minute
decision to keep the entire pageant in Bali is yet another example of
authorities bowing to religious extremists.
On Monday,
the MNC Group, the country’s largest media company and the main organizer of
Miss World 2013, announced it would move the pageant’s grand final, slated for
Sept. 28, from Bogor, south of Jakarta, to Nusa Dua in Bali at the request of
the government, after the strong urging of Muslim hard-line groups.
Liliana
Tanoesoedibjo, the event’s head organizer who was forced to find a new venue in
the space of four days after spending more than three years preparing for the
event, expressed disappointment in the nation’s leaders and the lack of effort
from religious groups to compromise.
“They
[those opposing the event] don’t understand what Miss World is about, and they
don’t want to compromise,” Liliana, the chairwoman of the Miss Indonesia group
— which is the organizing committee for Miss World 2013 — told the Jakarta
Globe.
“Maybe if
the government was stronger something could be done, but it’s because the
government is not strong,” said Liliana, the wife of MNC Group owner Hary
Tanoesoedibjo, one of Indonesia’s wealthiest individuals and a vice
presidential candidate for next year’s election.
In a
statement, MNC said that it had suffered heavy financial losses due to the Miss
World relocation, having to rearrange activities at the last minute and moving
the accommodations for the 129 contestants, their supporters and family
members.
Not
deterred
Liliana
said the criticism the event had garnered had not deterred her but conceded she
was growing increasingly frustrated by those in opposition to the pageant,
believing they were using its widespread global attention to promote their own
agendas.
“We know
that some people are criticizing because they want to be acknowledged in the
world. They want to have their own opinion so they take advantage of this event
to make their name big,” she said, adding “if their motive was right they would
want to talk with us.”
In the
lead-up to the event many religious groups, including the Islamic Defenders
Front (FPI) and the Islamic People’s Forum (FUI), have spoken out, held
demonstrations throughout the country and accused Miss World of damaging women’s
dignity by exploiting their bodies and degrading Islamic teachings.
In response
to the negativity surrounding the event and the increasing threats of violence
by Islamic extremists, Liliana said it was “sad,” because the very reason to
hold the competition was to “promote unity and Indonesia to the world.”
“We all
give the best for Indonesia, we have the passion for Indonesia, we love our
country. We don’t want to degrade Indonesia,” she said, highlighting the
benefits the international competition would bring to the nation, especially to
the tourism sector and other industries including fashion, as well as promoting
social causes.
Miss World
is very happy with how MNC has managed the event despite the criticism it has
received and the lack of government support, Liliana said.
“In other
countries, Miss World is managed by the government, but we have done everything
ourselves,” she added.
Speaking
from Bali, Andreas Harsono, head researcher for Human Rights Watch Indonesia,
said the only message the competition is currently sending to the world was
that Indonesia was undergoing a “radicalization of Islam.”
“Of course
we regret that the government does not allow the contest to proceed in
[Bogor],” he said.
“They have
broken no laws or regulations. They have a permit, but because of the Islamist
pressure the government has revoked the Miss World contest.”
Security
threat
On Tuesday
the American Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia released a statement by the US
Embassy in Jakarta warning Americans in Bali during Miss World to “maintain a
high level of vigilance and take appropriate steps to enhance personal
security” on information that extremist groups may be planning to disrupt the
pageant.
In two
weeks Indonesia will play host to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit,
the biggest global conference Indonesia has seen since becoming a democratic
nation. Leaders from all over the world, including US President Barack Obama
and Vladimir Putin of Russia are expected to attend.
The APEC
summit, according to Andreas who is monitoring the situation in Bali, is the
only thing preventing a violent attack from Islamic extremists targeting the
beauty pageant as the government endeavors to save face.
“Sources
have told me that the government will never allow a violent protest not because
of Miss World but because of APEC, which is sad,” he said.
“The fact
that Bali is holding the competition now merely because it has a majority Hindu
population is a concern.”
The
government is not preventing the protests at Miss World “because of the
principles of diversity, the principles of religious freedom or freedom of
expression” Andreas continued, “but this is because of APEC and it is
disheartening.”
In March
this year, Human Rights Watch released a report titled “In Religion’s Name,”
which slammed the Indonesian government for its ignorant and at times complicit
approach to religious conflict that HRW says has been escalating.
Several
examples of government inaction in the face of religious intolerance, including
a lack of arrests and denouncement of attacks on religious minorities such as
Christians, Shia Muslims and members of Ahmadiyah, and the barricading and
forced closure of houses of worship, have occurred since the report’s release.
The latest
uproar over Miss World and the government’s submission to the demands of
hard-liners is another step backward in the nation’s commitment to fighting
faith-based intolerance, Andreas said.
Bonar Tigor
Naipospos, deputy chairman of the Setara Institute, a religious freedom
advocacy group, credited the government with at least permitting the pageant in
the first place.
“Don’t
forget in [former president] Suharto’s time he canceled the event because of
pressure from Islamic groups. In this instance the government allowed the
competition and tried to compromise so this is a show of progress,” he said.
However,
Bonar criticized the government’s ongoing manipulation of Islam in politics,
which he said had heavily influenced its passive position in the debate.
“The
government has always considered Islam as a political force. It needs support
from the Islamic community. Meanwhile, religious groups use this issue [Miss
World] to get support or sympathy from the Indonesian people and they will try
to show they are defending Islam. That’s their goal, that’s their
message,” he said.
The
Religious Affairs Ministry did not reply to the Globe’s request for comment.
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