Why swim suits lack on the Rwandan catwalk

As they elegantly stretched out their beautiful necks and arms, the catwalk just seemed a scene of indescribable beauty. At the screening of Miss Rwanda, many were thrilled by what was before their eyes at the Serena Hotel. The extremely stunning girls turned heads! And as the guests looked admiringly at the gorgeous beauties as they changed into different styles, the only gap left was the beach wear {swim suit}! When choosing beauty queens in other countries, the beach wear is a must when it comes to the fashion show. Meanwhile, to Rwanda , the swim suit is no where on the list. Since the Miss Campus contests kicked off in 2005, the swim suit has constantly been an omission. And on the look of things, the beach wear is not about to be added on the list. The absence of the beach wear has paused questions on whether Rwanda wants to take beauty pageants to another level, like the sister African countries. Meanwhile, the ‘Rwanda Miss Industry’is not willing to lose its culture in favor of beauty pageants. And when it comes to Rwanda’s cultural trends, the dress code ranks first. “The Rwandan culture forbids a girl from exposing some body parts especially the thighs,” says Annet Mahoro, an aspiring beauty queen for The Miss East Africa contest. And on the cat walk, descent dressing is an added value when it comes to awarding marks on fashion. Culturally, a Rwandan girl is one who keeps her body secret. Any typical Rwandan describes a girl as ‘umukobwa womugisabo,’ a reserved and private girl. Private via dressing and the way they carry themselves. While beauty queens world wide can’t wait for the beach wear to proudly expose how elegant the creator shaped them, Rwandan girls a re sure of thriving without exposing body parts. To Rwanda, the different key determinants of beauty are outside nudity. Semi-bare or not, a beautiful girl is easily identified. According to Dr.Jean Pierre Higiro, The Initiator of Miss Campus Beauty Pageants, a girl’s beauty is basically the elegance in their walk. “The way they take a step, stretch out their hands with heads high is enough to crown them beauty queens,” says Higiro. Apart from the catwalk, the Rwandan interpretation of beauty stands out. In Uganda, a healthy girl with a light complexion is considered extremely beautiful while in Rwanda dark and slender is ideal. While deciding, judges consider the Rwandan interpretation of beauty hence eliminating what is out of culture. “Beauty means the smile, facial appearance and charm,” says Evelyn Umurerwa, a Judge on the Miss Rwanda Panel.And with intellectual capacity being the key determinant to winning, beauty queens can’t even risk trying swim suits, they mean going against the culture yet any intellectual girl has to build and emphasize the cultural trends. Unlike other countries, aspiring for beauty is more original in Rwanda and in line with the do’s and don’ts of culture. During the King’s reign, gorgeous beauties from all over the country would catwalk, semi- nude for the King to choose a wife. Seeing semi-naked girls was strictly for the King alone. As beauty contests get famous, Rwandan beauties emphasise cultural values; among these, is respectable dressing. lillianean@yahoo.com