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Breaking the tradition, Miss Peru Pageant Contestants raise voice against gender based violence

Indian film actress and model Huma Qureshi just tweeted something and it’s worth your attention. Here’s the tweet-

Now let me tell you what it is-

There’s a weird tradition in the Miss Peru beauty pageant, in which the contestants have to read out their body measurements. But these ladies went a step ahead and did something incredible which is much needed by the world.

Women competing in these pageants are often required to supply their measurements (bust, waist, hip) while introducing themselves.

However breaking with tradition, the aspiring beauty queens used their moment on the stage to speak up about women’s rights and gender violence.

These contestants had the best responses when asked by the judges to reveal their body measurements to the audience during this year’s competition.

Rather than sharing their bra sizes, the contestants — from various parts of the South American country — all revealed different facts concerning femicide and female violence in Peru, where women are getting killed in alarming numbers.

Miss Peru 2018 winner Romina Lozano said: “I represent the constitutional province of Callaomy and my measurements are: 3114 women victims of trafficking up until 2014.”

“My name is Camila Canicoba and I represent the department of Lima. My measurements are: 2202 cases of femicide reported in the last nine years in my country.”

“My name is Juana Acevedo and my measurements are: more than 70 per cent of women in our country are victims of street harassment.”

“My name is Luciana Fernández and I represent the city of Huánuco, and my measurements are: 13,000 girls suffer sexual abuse in our country.”

“My name is Melina Machuca, I represent the department of Cajamarca, and my measurements are: more than 80 per cent of women in my city suffer from violence.”

“my name is Almendra Marroquín and I represent Cañete, and my measurements are: more than 25 per cent of girls and teenagers are abused in their schools.”

“My name is Bélgica Guerra and I represent Chincha. My measurements are: the 65 per cent of university women who are assaulted by their partners.”

“My name is Romina Lozano and I represent the constitutional province of Callao, and my measurements are: 3114 women victims of trafficking up until 2014.”

Organizers also displayed newspaper clippings behind the contestants during the swimsuit competition, with headlines describing the murder and assault of women as they crossed the stage. Organizer Jessica Newton also defended the swimsuit segment against accusations of objectification, saying that “women can walk out naked if they want to.”

The televised show shocked viewers who were expecting traditional light entertainment. Gender-based violence has been a hot issue in Peru.

The contestants are planning to lead a march to highlight violence against women in Lima in November.

According to the Observatory of Citizen Security of the Organisation of American States, Peru ranks as second only to Bolivia with the worst record of violence against women in South America.

The Peruvian government says 800 women have been murdered in gender-related violence in the six years leading up to 2015.

Peru’s Congress passed a law in September 2015 providing comprehensive measures to prevent and punish violence against women and set up shelters and temporary refuges for women.

Last year tens of thousands of women demonstrated in Lima and other cities calling on the authorities to do more to stop it.

The pageant ended with a series of questions lobbed at the contests about how they would change laws to help combat femicide, the act of killing women because they are women.

Watch the powerful video-

https://youtu.be/p2keNlHhCuY

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