Oops.. Pak beauty condones blasts

Islamabad, Dec. 19 (PTI): Pakistanis are poking fun at their own beauty queen who has told CNN she “condones” the Mumbai attacks.

Natasha Paracha, the reigning Miss Pakistan World who is a Berkeley graduate, reportedly said: “The image of Pakistan has been threatened with these recent attacks and I feel that now as Pakistanis we have to stand up and condone what has happened in the country of India and through these Mumbai attacks.”

Pakistani blogger Kamil Yousuf said Natasha used the word “condone” twice. The second time she said: “As an ambassador to my country, Pakistan, I feel that we as Pakistanis need to work together and Indians as well need to work and work on this friendship that we have and condone these attacks thoroughly.”

Kamil could not help take a dig at her in his post. “Dear Miss Pakistan World,” he said, “the word is ‘condemn’, not ‘condone’.”

“There are many silly but well-meaning things she says during this interview,” Kamil wrote. “For instance, that India and Pakistan have for many years been both friends and colleagues and that Natasha is somehow an ambassador ‘to’ Pakistan.”

When it was pointed out that India and Pakistan have been enemies for decades and asked if there is any sympathy for terrorists in her country, Natasha, who is based in New York, said: “...yes there has been cross-border tension but India and Pakistan have been working as friends and as colleagues for many years now.”

Asked how she would tackle terrorism, Natasha began talking about portraying Pakistani women as being strong.

On British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s observation that most terror plots being investigated have links to Pakistan, she said: “These are non-state actors.”

Natasha said: “Pakistan has been working to fight terrorism for a few years now and as President Zardari has said and Prime Minister Gilani has stated that we are going to work with the world community to fight this terrorism.”

The Miss Pakistan World pageant, which is in its sixth edition, is frowned upon by conservative forces in the country.

Kamil admitted that he did not know Pakistan had a Miss Pakistan World by the name of Natasha Paracha or that she was the chairperson of Pakistani affairs with the UN International Renewable Energy Organisation.

“I was actually quite surprised on both counts. But surely, if you were going to appear on CNN wearing a Miss Pakistan sash in order to give a statement on behalf of your country in the midst of a political crisis, you would take the time to learn the difference between two fairly critical antonyms. You went to Berkeley, for God’s sake,” he wrote.

One blogger, called hanginguppakistan.com, was however, surprised that CNN chose to speak to a beauty queen about politics.

“How can you logically expect profound statements from pageant girls who constantly regurgitate lines about world peace?”

'Dear Miss Pakistan the word is condemn, not condone'

Islamabad (PTI): Pakistanis are poking fun at a beauty queen from the country who, in a recent interview, said she "condones" the Mumbai attacks.

Reigning Miss Pakistan World Natasha Paracha, a Berkley graduate, said she "condoned" the Mumbai attacks not once, but twice in an interview with CNN earlier this week.
"There are many silly, but well-meaning things she says during this interview For instance, that India and Pakistan have for many years been both 'friends' and 'colleagues', and that Natasha is somehow an ambassador 'to' Pakistan," wrote blogger Kamil Yousuf.

The especially daft one was as follows: "The image of Pakistan has been threatened with these recent attacks and I feel that now as Pakistanis we have to stand up and condone what has happened in the country of India and through these Mumbai attacks."

Yousuf wrote that though Paracha's use of the word "condone" appeared to be a slip of the tongue, she had used it again in the same interview when she said: "as an ambassador to my country Pakistan I feel that we as Pakistanis need to work together and Indians as well need to work and work on this friendship that we have and condone these attacks, thoroughly.

In his post titled "Dear Miss Pakistan World, the word is 'condemn', not 'condone'", Yousuf admitted that he did not know Pakistan had a 'Miss Pakistan World' by the name of Natasha Paracha or that she was the chairperson of Pakistani affairs with the United Nations International Renewable Energy Organisation.

Pakistan May Not Be Ready for Its Beauty Queen

Pakistan May Not Be Ready for Its Beauty Queen

If you live in the East Village, you may have seen the reigning Miss Pakistan coming out of her walk-up not far from St. Marks Place. You may have glimpsed her celebrating her victory with some friends at the Hudson Hotel, or entering one of the jazz clubs where she likes to hear live music.

Every once in a while, you can catch Miss Pakistan, Natasha Paracha, 24, hopping out of a cab in her rhinestone tiara, fresh from an appearance. “Give me that tiara!” a young man with his boyfriend called out to her on such an occasion a few weeks ago. “I want it!” She flashed them a megawatt smile but kept the tiara, which she normally stashes in a floral-patterned box in her closet.

On the one hand, it seems only natural that Miss Pakistan should live in downtown Manhattan, a place where celebrity seems to be its own form of local citizenry. On the other hand, it makes no sense at all. You could say a lot about the glamorous internationalism of, say, Shanghai, and yet there’s no chance that you’d catch the reigning Miss America taking up residence there, limiting herself to an audience of expatriates.

The Miss Pakistan pageant, now in its sixth year, is unique as these things go. None of this year’s 12 contestants, to start, reside in Pakistan, but hail instead from the United States, Canada and England. (The full title reflects that international flavor: Miss Pakistan World.) And the contestants do not compete for the crown in Lahore or Islamabad, but in Mississauga, Ontario. Pakistan, apparently, is not yet ready for a beauty pageant, although why that is depends on whom you ask.

“It’s still a new country, and pageantry is a new concept there,” said Ms. Paracha, chic in a Nanette Lepore dress, sipping an espresso at the Blue Water Grill. “The entertainment industry is just developing.”

Ms. Paracha, who works at the United Nations and has lived in the United States since age 2, allowed that there might be some backlash in Pakistan, a conservative Muslim state, if one of its representatives were to compete internationally in a bikini. Indeed, Amna Buttar, a founder of the Asian-American Network Against Abuse of Human Rights, who lives in Lahore, pointed out that there is currently a scandal brewing in Pakistan over a leak of photographs of the daughter of the governor of Punjab swimming in a bikini.

“In Pakistan, we are trying to get basic rights for women: right to marry, right to divorce, equal opportunity for job and education, and issues like Miss Pakistan create problems for this movement,” Ms. Buttar said in an e-mail message. “An average Pakistani young woman does not want to wear a bikini in public, and for her it is important to have equal opportunity and all focus should be on that, and not on a pageant where only the elite can participate.”

The founder of the pageant, a Toronto entrepreneur named Sonia Ahmed, said that she had been making plans to take the pageant to Pakistan as soon as next year until the fall of President Pervez Musharraf, whose government was considered relatively open to the advancement of women — which in Pakistan, at least, meant the conditions were relatively favorable for aspiring beauty queens. Now, she is keeping the pageant in Canada because she cannot guarantee the security of contestants.

“It may only be like 1 percent of the total population, but the fundamentalist problem is still present in Pakistan,” Ms. Ahmed said.

Since she was crowned in May, Ms. Paracha, a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, has limited her appearances to the United States, speaking at a gathering of nonresident Pakistanis in New York, showing up at a Pakistan Day celebration in Washington, raising money for Vision of Development, a nonprofit agency that she started in high school to support rural Pakistani women, and making the occasional media appearance.

This month, she went on CNN to urge her country to stand up and condemn the terrorist attacks on Mumbai, except that she accidentally used the word condone. Fortunately, it was clear from the context what she meant, and no international incidents ensued. (Slip of the tongue or not, her comments were an improvement on those of a previous Miss Pakistan: calling President Musharraf a “hunk” she’d like to date.)

So Ms. Paracha is a beauty queen, unlike most others in some important regards, and a lot like them in others: a comely ambassador for her country who’s eager to avoid controversy, promote her country and be a good role model for young women (she’s also an accomplished flamenco dancer). She told CNN she’d like “to show that Pakistani women are strong and we can definitely do a lot to represent the nation on a global sphere.”

It may sound like yet another blandishment, but given what Ms. Ahmed had to say, Ms. Paracha, who is traveling to Islamabad on Saturday to see her family and, she hopes, make press appearances, may be making more of a political statement than she would care to admit in taking on that particular crown.

In future global competitions, Ms. Paracha, an observant Muslim, says yes, she’d be willing to wear a bikini (there was no bathing suit event in this year’s Miss Pakistan competition, though there has been twice since 2002). “It’s just one small aspect of the pageant,” she said. Because both Miss World and Miss Universe require that their competitors be crowned in the country they represent, Ms. Paracha is ineligible for those competitions. But Miss Tourism Queen International — watch out!

E-mail: susan.dominus@nytimes.com

Miss Pakistan World 2008 - Natasha Paracha

Miss Pakistan World 2008 - Natasha Paracha

Miss Pakistan World 2008 on Mumbai Blasts

Dec 07, 2008 – "The recent tragedy in Mumbai was the work of misguided individuals who do not represent a specific religion, creed or nationality," said Miss Pakistan World Natasha Paracha. "The fact these young men may have links to Pakistan is in no way indicative of the culture and caliber of people that represent Pakistan. It is my hope the world views this tragedy with those thoughts in mind as we all mourn for the victims and their families." Paracha, only the sixth woman in the history of her country to be named Miss Pakistan World when she won that honor earlier this year, also serves as the Chairperson of Pakistani Affairs with the International Renewable Energy Organization at the United Nations. Miss Paracha is a 2005 graduate of the University of California at Berkeley earning a degree in Political Science and Business Administration. While in college she also founded the Pakistani Students Association.

Besides her work at the United Nations, Miss Paracha has created a non-profit foundation, Vision of Development, in which the goal is to reach out to the poverty stricken regions in Pakistan.

"My intention as Miss Pakistan World is to raise awareness and help the world understand the plight of my fellow countrymen," said Paracha. "I'm interested in dispelling misperceptions of the country of Pakistan, as well as aid in the empowerment of women in my country. The role of women in Pakistan is one of the most misunderstood notions in the world today." Paracha's involvement in renewable energy and alternatives has lead her to forming the non-profit organizaton which is dedicated to clean water initiatives in the Middle East, Haiti, Libya and Brazil. Q&A with Miss Pakistan World Natasha Paracha:

Q: What are your thoughts on the recent tragedy in Mumbai?
NP: The tragedy in Mumbai has left us all in shock. It is difficult to understand that such violent acts are taking place in metropolitan regions. First, the attacks that were carried out at Marriott in Islamabad and now this. It is important for the world to recognize that the individuals who carried out the attacks do not represent any religion, creed or nationality. I have family and friends that live close to the Taj and Oberoi and my heart goes out to all those innocent people involved.

Q: What is the most misunderstood aspect about Pakistani women and the role they play in that society:
NP: In history, there definitely has been a misconception in the Western world that Pakistani women come in second compared to their male counterparts. However, women in Pakistan have played a major role in politics and activism. Pakistan is the first country in the Muslim world to see a female Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto. Pakistan also has seen great female leaders in the arts, legal arena and work force.

Q: You are involved in a non-profit energy initiative. What do you hope to accomplish?
NP: I work for the Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Organization at the United Nations. IREO is an intergovernmental organization that works to promote the use of affordable, clean sources of renewable energy worldwide. It strives to make alternative renewable energy sources a key component to eradicate the current depletion of our environment by the use of fossil fuels that has led to our climate change and the energy crisis we are now facing. IREO strives to achieve global energy security, and bridge the energy divide with a special priority for the Developing and Least Developed countries in the world.

Q: What are your future plans?
NP: I would love to represent Pakistan in international pageant in April, but for now my future plans as Miss Pakistan World include promoting the rich culture and traditions of Pakistan, empowering women in rural regions of the country through various NGO work, and promoting the necessity of literacy among children in Pakistan.