'She can tell the world we exist'

For the first time in two decades, Indonesia has sent a contestant to the prestigious Miss Universe contest, being held in Thailand, despite some loud protests here. This predominantly Muslim country once banned all local beauty pageants and forbade citizens from competing in international pageants, regardless of which religion the girl was, as religious rightists claim it is a disgrace to the culture and women. The Jakarta Post asked residents about their thoughts on the issue.

Muhammad Satrianto, 27, is a historian specializing in the Indonesian colonial period. He lives with his family in Lubang Buaya, East Jakarta:

I think there will be more positive impacts with such participation in international pageants compared to negative ones. For example, since reform, Indonesia has always been perceived as a terrible country: full of corruption and violence. Therefore, sending a participant to a world beauty pageant could be a way to show another picture of Indonesians, who also have the same intelligence as other people in the world.

Since Miss Indonesia was elected through a tight competition, she is definitely a smart woman who can represent other smart Indonesians.

Second, she could also remind foreigners that Indonesia exists. She could tell people where Indonesia is, aside from Bali.

The negative side is that showing off beauty and intelligence is not an eastern cultural norm. This country's traditional values teach us about being humble, not showing off.

However, like I said before, there are more positive impacts than negative. If Miss Indonesia participates in such a competition, she should remember that her main task is to promote the country.

Asteria Praninditya, 21, is a student at the School of Psychology, University of Indonesia. She lives with her family in Depok:

The thing about participating in a Miss Universe pageant is that Miss Indonesia will get tons of new experience because she will meet people from around the world. She will also appear more beautiful, thanks to the help of world-class beauty experts. It could advance her career.

But, due to the luxurious facilities she would enjoy and popularity she would gain, she might forget her main task: improving the country's image. Worst, she could become arrogant.

She would do the promotion just because she is told to, not because she realizes how important the promotion is to help the tourism industry here.

Such a possibility could be overcome if she always holds on to her main task, that is being the country's representative in each event she attends.

--The Jakarta Post