Mister International in Indonesia: Where are the protests?

I still remember not a day went by in September without news on various mass organizations staging protests on Miss World 2013 held in Indonesia. They demanded that the beauty pageant be cancelled, citing that it is not appropriate with Indonesian culture.

Following the rains of demonstrations and protests, theorganizer cancelled the beauty pageant’s venues in Jakarta and held it solely inBali Island.

But, apparently, Indonesia will host another international beauty pageant!

Mister International 2012Ali Hammoud

On my way home from my office, I always pass a billboard informing me about Mister International 2013 slated to be held in Jakarta on Wednesday, November 27, 2013. But something is missing. There is no news about people protesting the show. Where are they?

Those who disagreed about Miss World held in Indonesia argued that it is not aligned with Indonesian culture. They mostly disagreed with the bikini contests, which is a part of the competition. The eventorganizer, however, had tried to make Miss World 2013 more respectful toIndonesian culture by eliminating the bikini contest. This, according to the protestors, was not enough.  

The protestors of Miss World 2013, borrowing Feminists’ arguments, believed that women are degraded in such contests. They argued that women were commodified in such contests.

Now, I want to question: why are there no protestors for Mister International 2013?

Mister International in Indonesia is the 8^th installment of this male beauty pageant. Last year, it was held in the Philippines. The contestants, as those at various beauty pageants, have to undergo various stages before going to the final round. If Miss World requires its contestants to wear bikinis in one of its competition session, Mister International is unsurprisingly not different. It requires its contestants to wear swimsuit in one of its sessions. I do not know whether or not the organizer of Mister International 2013 will scrap the swimsuit session.

Now once again, where are the protesters? Males only in Speedo? No one wants to protest that?

Miss World was rejected by some groups in Indonesia because of its bikini session –which actually was scrapped. Indonesian Ulema Council(MUI) argued that based on Islamic teaching women were not supposed to revealtheir body parts. They should conceal their awrah (intimate parts), the council said.

Mister International 2011's Swimwear Contest 

According to Hanafi’s interpretations, female awrah includes her entire body, excluding her face and her palms. Some interpret that female should also conceal their face. The awrah, however, is different when femaleare with fellow Muslim females, non-Muslim females, their husbands, close-malerelatives, male children and non-male relative.

Then, the question remains as to what are male’s awrah?

Unsurprisingly, male’s awrah, according to Sunni interpretations, only “refers to the part of the body from the navel (not inclusive) to the knees.” Yeah, I know, very simple compared to females’ awrah.

According to the definition, Mister World, therefore, is not different from Miss World. It exploits intimate body parts! Can those people accept images of males only wearing a piece of cloth covering their groin? But, at the same time, they are irritated with images of females in their bikinis?  

Well, certainly, some feminists may provide insights on this dichotomy between Miss World and Mister International in Indonesia. As much as I am tempted to comment on this matter with feminist perspective, I choose to step aside. I just want to share how I perceive about the inequality this society posits on its approach to beauty pageants.  If they argue that such contests are not appropriate with people’s custom and culture, then why don’t they protest them all?

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