Beauty and the Beast of cultures

But as the tragic, sometimes comic events unfolded it soon became clear that the only distinction between the new Miss World paegentry and the one of old was dishonesty. Furthermore, the events also showed a another African country craving for modernity whilst been shackled by poverty, religious division and a perennial western perception that only 'dark' people do dark deeds.

Nigeria would not have been the first choice for Miss Worlds Chief excutive Julie Morely, to hold this years beauty pageant. But when Agbani Derago from Nigeria won in 2001 she had no choice. The Nigerian authorities having had bloody religious disturbances two years earlier that left 220 dead and 10,000 homeless, were keen to use the international event as a platform to proudly show their country in a new light.

But international feminists reminded the world and Mrs Morely that elements in Nigeria were anything but modern and called on her to cancel the event. They highlighted the case of Amina Lawal who was committed to death by stoning for adultery.

Miss Morely, who for many years has tried to rebrand Miss World as modern, sort to tell her critics to use the compitition to put pressure on the Nigerian Government to ensure that the Sharia Law ruling-which is only relevant in the country's Muslim states-must be overturned. 'We are still going to demonstrate our disgust at the fact that they can consider this execution. It is much more effective that staying away because we are not turning our back on Nigeria'.

In two short sentences Morley became a champion of women-hood and Africa. And it seemed to some success. The authorities quick to avoid an internaitional incident which was gathering apace, assured the outside world that they would if necessary overrule the stoning sentences.

But it wasn't long before the fragile pact between beauty pageant and 'real politik' exploded with a deluge of violence.

Nigeria's muslim communities which dominate the Northern towns had grave misgivings about the country holding such an event and felt particularly aggrieved that it was to be held during the holy month of Ramadam.

But it was a flippant remark in a local newspaper that ignited a deluge of religious violence. A young hapless reporter suggested that the Muslim community should not get too excited about the event because phrophet Muhammad would have probably taken one of the contestents as a bride had he been around to see them.

That was the straw that broke the camels back and it resulted in over 200 deaths of rioting Muslims and Christians and the displacement of many thousands. The response from the Miss World organisers and the west was predictable as it was disgusting.

Asked if she would cancel the event as a mark of respect of those that died, Julia Morely replied that it was 'absolutely unreasonable' . Furthermore, she added 'the troubles were not started by the girls or any of us but by the -female-Journalists remarks'.

Contrary to what she had professed earlier Julia Morely really didn't give a damn about Nigeria, the Nigerians or the female reporter she so readily fed to the world as a scapegoat. Morely's only concern was her money making project and no African tradegy, indirectly of directly involved with the event was going to get in the way of that.

As Kundar burned certain British commentators looked on with colonial scorn. One British Newspaper -The Sun-reported that their journalist had 'rescued the 92 Miss World beauties hold up in massacre-ravaged Nigeria'. Truth is the contenstant were never in any danger being more than one hundred miles from scene of the troubles, and the reporter joined the contestants on their plane home. Other papers waxed lyrical about the brutally without a hint of political or religious context leaving the ready with the simplistic headlines that the 'Beauty queens back from bloodshed'.

The truth behind the bloody riots in the Northern states has as much to do with abstract poverty as it does with religious tension. A strong Islamic tradition goes back to the early nineteenth century with the 'jihad' of the Uthman dan Fodio. During the colonial period, the British practice of indirect rule actually strenghened these regimes and their power to coerce their people. This juxtaposed with their Christian neighbors and a level of poverty we in the western world would find hard to imagine has always been.

Parts of the British media could not resist