29/09/2013

Miss World 2013

Miss Philippines crowned Miss World amid Muslim anger

The new Miss World, Megan Young (C), from the Philippines stands after winning the crown during the Miss World 2013 finals in Nusa Dua, on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on September 28, 2013

The new Miss World, Megan Young (C), from the Philippines stands after winning the crown during the Miss World 2013 finals in Nusa Dua, on Indonesia's resort island of Bali on September 28, 2013

New Miss World, Megan Young (C), from the Philippines is congratulated by outgoing Miss World Yu Wenxia (L) after winning the crown during the Miss World 2013 finals in Nusa Dua, in Indonesia's resort island of Bali on September 28, 2013

New Miss World, Megan Young (C), from the Philippines is congratulated by outgoing Miss World Yu Wenxia (L) after winning the crown during the Miss World 2013 finals in Nusa Dua, in Indonesia's resort island of Bali on September 28, 2013

Miss Philippines Megan Young (C) is seen on the catwalk with other Miss World contestants in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian island of Bali on September 24, 2013

Miss Philippines Megan Young (C) is seen on the catwalk with other Miss World contestants in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian island of Bali on September 24, 2013

Muslim hardliners hold an anti-Miss World protest in Jakarta on September 6, 2013

Muslim hardliners hold an anti-Miss World protest in Jakarta on September 6, 2013

Miss Philippines was crowned Miss World 2013 in a glittering finale Saturday on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, amid tight security following weeks of hardline Muslim protests.

Hundreds of Islamic radicals held a prayer session in a mosque near the capital to express their anger, while Megan Young wept as she won the coveted title on Hindu-majority Bali at the end of a three-week contest. The 23-year-old, wearing a pearl white gown, promised to be "the best Miss World ever" in front of a cheering crowd, which included many Filipinos, in a venue guarded by heavily armed police and water cannons.

The final was moved to Bali, where there is little hardline influence, from its original venue just outside the capital Jakarta after thousands of protesters took to the streets across the world's most populous Muslim-majority country.

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