The Miss Universe Jamaica beauty pageant organizers have chosen to remain silent at this time, despite a growing call for a boycott of this year’s Miss Universe competition.
The South African government has stated unequivocally that it will not send its delegate, Lalela Mswane, to the pageant.
This is in response for a boycott by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI).
This is not the first time an international pageant has faced a boycott call. A number of countries withdrew their Miss World delegates in 1976 to protest the presence of a representative from apartheid-ruled South Africa.
Jamaica did not pull their queen, and Cindy Breakspeare went on to win, becoming the country’s second holder of the title after Carole Joan Crawford in 1963.
However, by the following year, the boycott had gained traction, and Jamaica’s representative, Sandra Kong, had withdrawn.
The Miss Universe competition is set to take place in Eilat, Israel, on December 12.
