Sun 14 November 2021:
The South African government has withdrawn its support for the Miss SA pageant. This is over outrage for staging the Miss Universe pageant in Israel in December.
The withdrawal follows consultations between the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture and the pageant’s organisers.
In the statement, Minister Nathi Mthethwa said that whilst it appreciate the likely impact on the individual interest of the current Miss South Africa, reasons for withdrawal, far outweigh individual interest.
The department said atrocities committed by Israel against Palestinians were well documented and the government, as the legitimate representative of the people of South Africa, “could not in good conscience associate itself with such”.
“Palestinians’ daily lived experience under occupation is horrific”
Last month, Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandla Mandela on his call to boycott the Miss Universe pageant in Israel, citing that the “Palestinians’ daily lived experience under occupation is horrific”.
“My call to Miss SA was born out of my concern that we shouldn’t legitimise the daily killing, incarceration and harassment of innocent people. Apartheid Israel metes out brutality against young and old, women and men and does so with macabre impunity.”
He added that the pageant had not responded to a letter he wrote to them.
“Miss SA did not respond to my letter…We wrote to the newly crowned Miss South Africa Lalela Mswane to call on her to boycott the apartheid Israel Miss Universe pageant but she has not responded yet. We invited her to meet 23-year-old Palestinian activist Muna El Kurd.”
“Following the announcement by Miss Malaysia and Miss Indonesia that they will boycott the event in apartheid Israel, Miss Greece has now also announced that she too is withdrawing from the pageant. We are sure that many others will follow their courageous example,” Inkosi Mandela said.
Lalela Mswane was crowned Miss South Africa 2021 during the competition’s finale at the Grand West Casino in Cape Town in mid-October.
She beat nine other finalists from around the country to clinch the title. The 24-year-old is from KwaSokhulu near Richards Bay KwaZulu-Natal.
She is a model and dancer that also holds a Bachelor of Law qualification from the University of Pretoria.
Photo: Miss South Africa 2021 Lalela Mswane | Twitter/@Official_MissSA
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