Dethroned Myanmar beauty queen denies getting breast implants, wants apology
A Myanmar beauty queen dethroned for alleged misconduct said on Tuesday she would only return her pricey crown if South Korean pageant organisers apologised.
She also denied accepting free breast implants worth US$10,000 (S$12,500).
May Myat Noe, 16, was training to become a K-pop star in South Korea after winning the Seoul-based Miss Asia Pacific World beauty pageant in May.
But last week, event organisers stripped her of the title for alleged dishonesty. They accused her of absconding with the US$100,000 crown and breast implants, which they say they funded to enhance her budding singing career.
On Tuesday, the beauty queen hit back and demanded an apology from the organisers.
She said at a press conference in Yangon: "It is natural for me to feel that an apology should be demanded to rectify the damage they have done to the integrity of my country."
"I will return the crown only when they apologise to Myanmar, for the dignity of our country."
The teen also denied accepting free breast implants.
"I was put under duress to undergo head-to-toe cosmetic surgery which I refused... I didn’t have breast implants, but I don’t want to go into details, to preserve my dignity," she said.
Event organisers have accused her of being hard to manage, saying her behaviour had left them "very angry".
"She lied a lot to us about many things. Our past queens also complained – because of her, their reputations will suffer," event spokesman David Kim told AFP from Seoul.
Read our earlier report here.
Source: AFP
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