Seeking More “Quality” In The Miss Lebanon Competition

In what appears to be a reaction to criticism against the Minister of Tourism and its treatment of Lebanese women, Mr. Abboud explained to the media why his ministry decided to take control over the Lebanese beauty pageants.

[Miss Lebanon] has become too commercial and is not attracting the right girls,” caretaker Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud told The Daily Star. “What we are trying to achieve now is to get the pageant back to its former glory and restore the glamor and prestige which used to be associated with the competition. […] “The atmosphere has become for models, not for real girls, and most families are not OK for their daughters to enter the pageant,” he added.

I don’t think I’m old enough to remember the “glamor and prestige” he’s talking about, but it seems to me that he wants this to be more of a family affair (The bikini section is staying, don’t worry), with perhaps more Muslim girls (this is how I interpreted his “truly national competition” remark) and less bimbos (there’s a new minimum 2-languages requirement).

Could it be that Mr. Abboud actually wants to make this a more tasteful affair? Perhaps. But the most powerful critique of his Ministry still stands. As Patrick Galey wrote recently:

Not plenty of countries […] display the same level of hypocrisy by on one hand encouraging grabby men to come and ogle their women while denying those same women basic rights enjoyed by men.

Wouldn’t it be cool if the next Miss Lebanon actually takes on women’s rights as her cause?