JAKARTA: The organisers of the Miss World beauty pageant in Indonesia insisted yesterday the show would go on, as Islamic hardline protests began to spread across the country days before the contest starts.
More than 600 demonstrators took to the streets yesterday in two other major cities on the main island of Java — Surabaya and Bandung.
“Miss World is an immoral event. If it goes ahead, we will all be punished by God,” one protester shouted to the crowd in Bandung, where some 300 protesters responded with chants of “God is great”.
But Hary Tanoesoedibjo, head of MNC media group, which will broadcast the pageant and is also the local organiser, said: “I can assure you that there is nothing in this event that isn’t in accordance with our culture.”
The contest begins on Sunday on the resort island of Bali.
AFP
