A pageant of mixed blessings
A. Asohan, The Star, Asia News Network, Selangor, Malaysia
It would be a slight exaggeration to say that all of Thailand had been eagerly waiting for it: The most beautiful women from more than 80 countries coming down to play that ancient game of "who's the fairest of them all".
The 54th Miss Universe pageant has given Thai men something to ogle at and Thai women an opportunity to practice admonishing pinches; it was also something the government was looking forward to.
For a country still recovering from the devastating Boxing Day tsunamis, having the eyes of the world trained on you was to have been a double blessing: It would boost the local tourism industry, and also give the people some cheer.
Unfortunately, the pageant has turned out to be a mixed blessing instead.
The returns the Thai Government had been hoping for -- after plunking down 265 million baht (RM25mil) and beating competitive bids from China and Chile -- may turn out to be elusive ? or even worse, illusive.
Hosting the beauty pageant has also, in some ways, opened still-healing wounds in the Thai psyche.
Contrary to its reputation as a sex tourism spot, Thai society is quite conservative. Barring popular holiday spots, where local girls may dress differently to lure farang (or foreign) male tourists, Thai women in general dress more modestly than their KL counterparts.
Still, there has been ongoing friction between the conservative elements of the country and the more modern, outgoing factions. In April, the Ministry of Culture even talked about ordering college girls to dress more modestly.
It's an ongoing discourse that came to a boil when the Miss Universe aspirants took a luxury cruise along the Chao Phrya River on May 17, cavorting in their bikinis, as is their wont.
Unfortunately, at one point in the cruise, the backdrop was Thailand's revered riverside Wat Arun, or Temple of the Dawn.
The country was immediately riven in two. Bare skin in front of a religious site was too much to bear, for some. Local newspapers splashed the pictures on their front pages in shocked glee, inviting incensed responses from their readers.
But it was not just an unfortunate coincidence in placing, but also one in timing. Monks from 42 countries were convening on the kingdom to celebrate the Buddhist holy day in Bangkok, chosen to host the International Conference on the United Nations Day of Vesak.
Phra Thep Dilok, head of Thailand's National Centre for Buddhism Promotion, said the timing of the pageant was unfortunate.
At a time when Thais were supposed to ponder matters spiritual, they were being distracted by secular -- sexy, even -- temptations.
Still, the pageant organizers and local sponsors continued to do their bit. The beauty queens were there to adorn a charity auction one night, then sped to the beaches of Phuket where they splashed in the sands in an effort to entice tourists.
That was the crux. Thailand had bet big on using the pageant as a way of showing the world that its beaches were no longer awash with the tragic bloated bodies of the Dec. 26 tsunami victims.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) had expected 10,000 international visitors for the show.
Instead, there was a drop in the number of tourists. The Association of Thai Travel Agents said 93,458 tourists had arrived in the first 15 days of May, down 9.5 percent over the same period last year.
Now, TAT's only hope is the worldwide TV coverage of the pageant's final round, which concludes in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, to coincide with prime time back in the United States.
The writer is editor of the Asia News Network (www.asianewsnet.net) in Bangkok