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By Ahlam Ben Saga
Rabat – The Moroccan contestant of the “Miss Arab Veil” beauty pageant held in Cairo, Egypt between March 3 and March 4 has won the title “Miss Arab Veil 2018.”
The newly crowned Miss Arab Veil took to her social media accounts, Facebook and Instagram, to share her happiness with the Arab world.
“I’m so proud that I represented the Arab woman and raised the Moroccan flag,” El Kettani expressed in a video she shared on her Instagram page following her victory.
El Kettani is a Ph.D. student in Civil Engineering, she told Akhbar Al Yaoum during an interview prior to her success, adding that she would try to balance her studies, career, and what would follow her success in the contest.
El Kettani told Akhbar Al Yaoum in a previous interview that her purpose for participating in the Miss Arab Veil competition was to fulfill her dream of starting an organization that defends women’s rights and battles sexual harassment committed against women in the Arab world.
El Kettani added that she aims to negate the stereotypical image of hijab-wearing women through her participation in the beauty contest.
“I want to break the stereotype about the Hijabi woman and prove that she can also participate in contests as such and that she can prove herself in the Arab society,” she said.
El Kettani added that she considered participating after some girls sent her messages on her Instagram account, encouraging her to take part in the beauty contest.
The selection was built on a set of criteria such as etiquette, poise, modesty, and educational level, and El Kettani was first selected to participate based on these criteria, winning over the contest’s judges, who gave her 350 out of 400 points, El Kettani said.
“It is a dream come true,” El Kettani articulated her joyful sentiments on her Instagram page.
Miss Arab Veil is an annual beauty contest held since 2014 in Cairo, Egypt, exclusively for Hijabi participants. The contest was the idea of beauty expert Noha Hamdy who sought to promote tourism as well as Hijabi women in the Arab world, via the contest.
