Posted on 10/26/2003 9:09:04 PM PST by Stultis
"Naked" Miss Afghanistan slammed "We condemn Vida Samadzai, she is not representing Afghanistan's women, and this is not women's freedom." Surabi said according to Afghan culture women should not demonstrate their worth using their "beauty or bodies" but by their skills and knowledge. "In the name of women's freedom, what this Afghan girl has done is not freedom but is lascivious," the minister said. The 25-year-old Afghan contestant, who lives in the United States, is the first Afghan woman in 30 years to participate in the Miss World international beauty contest being held in the Philippines capital this week. The dark-haired, black-eyed Samadzai, apparently from a Pashtun tribe, was born and raised in Afghanistan but left for the United States in 1996 to escape the extremist Taliban regime which forced women to cover themselves from head to toe. Under the harsh regime women were not allowed to work outside their homes or go out without a close relative beside them. After the fall of the militia in 2001, an increasing number of women left the burqa, or veil, at home and some took jobs. The only other Miss Afghanistan was Zohra Daoud, who joined the Miss Universe contest in 1972.
AFP
27oct03
PRESIDENT Hamid Karzai's minister for women's affairs yesterday condemned Miss Afghanistan, as Vida Samadzai became the country's first woman in the post-Taliban era to appear in a bikini during a beauty contest in Manila.
"Appearing naked before a camera or television is not women's freedom but in my opinion is to entertain men," Minister Habiba Surabi said.
Miss Afghanistan Vida Samadzai prompted gasps from the crowd as she strutted down the catwalk in a sexy red bikini.
She was one of 60 competitors taking part in the Miss Earth contest in the Philippines.
For years Afghan women have been synonymous with the dour burqa - the full length body blanket forced upon them by their Islamic leaders.
But it seems liberation has gone too far - and a little to quickly - for some in the country.
"The way she appeared is not in our Afghan culture nor is endorsed by Islam," said Habiba Surabi, women's affairs minister.
It is the first time in 30 years that an Afghan woman has taken part in a beauty show.
The slim and dark-haired Samadzai was born and raised in Afghanistan, but left for the United States in 1996 to escape the civil war.
She told reporters she wanted to present a new image of Afghan women to the world.
"I would like to make people aware that as Afghan women we are talented, intelligent and beautiful.
"We are one of the people who can make a difference in this world," she said.
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/world/DailyNews/afghan011205_beauty.html
Dec. 5 — At 18, she was crowned Miss Afghanistan, was jet-setting with some of Kabul's biggest pop stars and was on her way to launching a career in radio and TV. At 25, Zohra Daoud was scrubbing the floors of a Richmond, Va., bakery — a political refugee from one of the world's most troubled hotspots.
And the downside to this is...?
Amen! These chicks are nasty. Washboard abs on a woman? No thanks. Nothing like a little belly on a girl to enhance her femininity.
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