Publications
Partners
Johannesburg – 24-year-old model Veronika Didusenko is allegedly taking legal action the Miss World organisation after being banned from taking part in the competition because she is divorced and has a five-year-old son.
The rules for the Miss World pageant state that you cannot be married, divorced, pregnant or have any children when entering the competition and throughout your reign should you win.
The drama for Veronika first started in 2018 when she was crowned Miss Ukraine. She was then supposed to represent the country at Miss World, but according to People, had her title stripped days later when it was discovered that she has a child and was once married.
Veronika addressed her title being taken away through a press briefing where she allegedly apologised for withholding the truth and later tackled the issue in an Instagram post as well.
"In 2018 this is simply not right. This discrimination on the grounds of motherhood must end," she wrote in part, calling the rules of the competition "archaic".
Fast-forward to 2019, and Veronika has decided that she will not back down without a fight.
The BBC reports that the beauty queen wants to "change" and "challenge" the rules of Miss World and allow them to "reflect" the realities of women today.
It's not uncommon for beauty queens to be stripped of their titles if they go against any of the rules set out by pageants.
In 2007 Miss California, Cristina Silva had her crown taken away after an alleged error in tallying votes, while in 2018 Miss Bolivia Joyce Prado had her title stripped for "breach of contract" when she fell pregnant during her reign.
Compiled by Nikita Coetzee (Sources: BBC, People, Channel24)
