Uganda’s Minister of Tourism, Godfrey Kiwanda is in hot soup for categorizing curvy women as the newest tourist attraction in the country; topping that, a beauty pageant branded Miss Curvy Uganda was set up to give voluptuous beauties a chance to battle it out so the country can select the finest curvaceous ladies who will put Uganda on the map.
This plan has been opposed by leaders and activists who see the move as a way of using women as objects for attraction. A group of legislators under the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association has called for cancellation of the contest and demanded an apology from the minister of tourism.
“We strongly condemn the act by the honorable minister, we therefore demand an apology from the minister,” said MP Pamela Nasiyo, chairperson of women parliamentarians.
The leaders asked the minister to find other ways of promoting tourism in the country instead of turning women into tourist attraction objects.
“This country is blessed with very many greens everywhere, he could talk about those. Why is he zeroing down on women, does it mean his mind is female centered?” posed Executive Director of Women in Development, Jane Oling.
Despite criticism, CEO Miss Curvy Competition, Anne Mungoma, has vowed to move ahead with the plans saying those opposing the beauty pageant were ignoring the reality on the ground.
“How come when we have this competitions for the slim women its not seen as prostitution, why are they rejecting the curvy ladies?” Mungoma further said the competition aims at allowing curvy women to express themselves and raise their self esteem instead of making them feel they are good for nothing.
