Six Southeast Asian countries won’t be joining Miss Universe pageant in Puerto Rico

Pageantry is still a booming industry in Southeast Asia, but the region will have fewer representation in the upcoming 75th Miss Universe pageant in Puerto Rico next month.

Over the weekend, the pageant opened its online fan voting on the official Miss Universe mobile app, with slots for several countries’ representatives missing. These were the same ones mentioned by a pageant official in an earlier interview that would not be participating this year.

READ: Miss Universe factions clash over 2027 host country claims

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Last month, Miss Universe Organization (MUO) CEO Ronald Day declared in an interview that this year’s international competition will not have any representatives from Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, and Singapore. The Bangkok-based Miss Grand International Public Co. Ltd., headed by Nawat Itsaragrisil, holds the franchises for these countries.

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But in a statement released by the Thai pageant company, they made it appear as though they were instead withdrawing the participation of the delegates of the six countries from the 75th Miss Universe pageant.

“After consultation with the relevant parties, national organizations and the six representatives, it has been determined that the representatives of [Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Laos] will not travel to participate in the 75th Miss Universe Competition under the present circumstances,” said the Oct. 21 statement.

Early last year, a flashy ceremony was held in Bangkok to announce Nawat’s acquisition of the Miss Universe Thailand franchise for five years, and the country’s hosting of the international competition. This year, he added five more countries to his Miss Universe portfolio.

He also later appointed himself as CEO of what he called “Miss Universe Eastern” to oversee more than 90 countries for MUO. The organization expressly refuted such an arrangement and clarified that he remains to be a mere national director who holds no other executive position within the organization.

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In the Oct. 21 statement, the Miss Grand International Public Co. Ltd. distanced itself from Nawat, and urged the public to see the company as a distinct entity from the controversial personality.

“The contractual rights concerning the six territories belong to Miss Grand International Public Company Limited, as the relevant corporate contracting party and rights holder. They do not personally belong to Mr. Nawat Itsaragrisil,” read the statement.

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“[A]ny personal disagreement, management dispute or public disagreement involving Nawat and certain individuals associated with MU West or the [MUO] should be conflated with, or used as a basis to prejudice, the contractual rights of MGI, nor should any such dispute affect the rights, dignity, opportunities or treatment of the six women selected to represent their respective countries,” the statement continued.

Last year, a public spat between Nawat and eventual Miss Universe winner Fatima Bosch at a pre-final event in Bangkok gained international attention. He later faced the media to issue a tearful apology for the commotion.

But despite Bosch gaining public sympathy for the incident, her victory was still not widely accepted by the international community, even by many of those who watched the show live in Thailand. And the drama ensued well after the competition had concluded.

Nawat continued to raise concerns about MUO, citing the legal predicaments that Raul Rocha, the president, is currently facing. This was something that did not sit well with the organization, and another exchange of public statements transpired.

And while the Thai personality has gained control of MUO’s website, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter) accounts, the MUO faction aligned with Rocha has retained custody over the pageant’s Instagram account and official mobile app. It also came out with its new website. These became the platforms for the online exchange of retaliatory statements between the two factions.

For now, the Miss Grand International Public Co. Ltd. still firmly asserts its hold on the Miss Universe franchises for the six countries, and clarified that it is not abandoning its contractual “relationship” even if the delegates will not be participating this year.

Pageant veteran Tharina Botes, who had competed at Miss International, Miss World, and MGI All Stars, had already been crowned as Miss Universe Thailand. Eunice Wong and Quynh Ann Nguyen were crowned Miss Universe Malaysia and Miss Universe Vietnam, respectively.

“They will continue to use their platforms to create positive social impact, represent their communities, inspire others and promote the values for which they were selected. Their achievements, dignity and worth cannot be determined by whether circumstances beyond their control prevent them from appearing on one particular international stage,” the Miss Grand International statement said.

“The circumstances surrounding the 75th Miss Universe Competition should never diminish what these six women have achieved or the responsibilities they continue to carry for their countries. They are not surrendering their dignity. They are not surrendering their national titles. And MGI is not surrendering its contractual rights,” the statement continued.

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With the recent development, Southeast Asia will have a very lean representation at the 2026 Miss Universe pageant. Bea Millan-Windorski will carry the Philippine flag, while Mary Grace Parry and Than Rthna will represent Myanmar and Cambodia, respectively. /edv