New contest to find Miss Asia Pacific World 2014: Organiser

A new contest to find a successor to the Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 pageant will be held on Nov 8 this year, a spokesperson for the organisation said in a statement.

It declared that "the title of Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 will not go to the first runner-up". The first runner-up position went to Miss Korea, Kim Eea. 

While the reasons are unclear, the statement on Aug 30 added that the pageant will be held later this year on South Korea's Jeju Island.

Ms May Myat Noe, winner of Miss Asia Pacific World Super Talent 2014, was flown to South Korea to be groomed to be a K-pop star after winning the pageant in May.

But she was stripped of her crown for alleged dishonesty and bad behaviour, with organisers later claiming she had absconded with the crown and free breast implants. 

Event spokesman David Kim, who is in Seoul, told reporters that organisers had paid US$10,000 (S$12,490) for a breast enlargement operation to help her budding singing career. 

In the most recent statement, organisers said: "We are very sad to announce that Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 Queen May Myat Noe from Myanmar got dethroned. She won her title and crown on May this year, but couldn't full fill her obligations as the winner."

It indicated that Ms Myat Noe's "spoiled" behaviour was to blame for her dethronement, revealing that she had requested organisers to allow her mother to travel to South Korea and asked them to sponsor her stay. 

"After many such instances of spoiled behavior and bad attitude, Miss Asia Pacific World Organisation had to dethrone May Myat Noe."

It added that Ms Myat Noe had left South Korea, taking with her the crown which cost US$100,000 (S$124,940), and police are now involved in the search for her and the crown.

The organisers promised a stricter judging criteria for the new pageant, and the winner will be able to go on to "have a career in the showbiz industry".

According to the online edition of Thailand's The Nation paper, Ms Myat Noe, who is back in Myanmar, told reporters Thursday that she will be holding a press conference to give an explanation. 

candicec@sph.com.sg