The teen beauty queen “Torika Watters” dumped after race row. Watters were chosen last ahead of a field of judging commission that included New Zealand supermodel Rachel Hunter and other non-Fijians.
Hundreds of complaints had been raised and a pageant spokeswoman said on Facebook there had been, “nothing but negative criticism and remarks from our own people” about the selection of Watters.
Torika Watters, who was the target of racist criticism about her looks, has been replaced as the island nation's Miss World Pageant entrant, organizers were reported saying Sunday.
The representatives say that the issue of age and deny her axing is related to complaints against her 16 year-old of mixed European-Fijian heritage did not look Fijian enough. Fiji beauty queen Torika Watters, who was the target of racist criticism about her looks, has been replaced as the island nation’s Miss World Pageant entrant, organizers were reported saying Sunday.
A 16-year-old beauty queen embroiled in a race row over whether she was “native enough” to be Miss Fiji has lost her crown with organizers now claiming she was too young to compete.
Show promoter Andy Black announced over this weekend that waters did not meet the requirements of the Miss World that contestants be at least 17 years old and she would be replaced by 24-years-old Koini Vakaloloma, the first runner-up.
In a statement to the Fiji times, waters referred to the “entire pageant fiasco” and said she was “proud of my identity as a Fijian and have never consider my people as racists.” But despite coming to Watters’ defense, that didn’t stop the pageant from stripping her of her title. Organizers said she needed to be 17 in order to compete in this August’s Miss World pageant in Inner Mongolia, China.
Some comments about her that she was crowded by some non-Fijian judges, in which Rachel and the ex-wife of Rod Stewart are included. Waters said that she doesn’t plan to appeal the pageant decision.