Miss Indonesia and her 'swimsuit problem'

Artika Sari Devi, Indonesia's first contestant in nine years, is frustrated at the fuss over her "swimsuit problem".

Artika Sari Devi, Indonesia's first Miss Universe hopeful in nine years, is a bit frustrated at all the fuss over her "swimsuit problem".

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The 25-year-old petite law graduate would prefer to talk about children's rights or education issues. But she faced a barrage of questions on Friday about what she will wear for the swimsuit contest next week.

For the record, it's a one-piece.

"There is the controversy in Jakarta about what the Koran says and the newspapers are always discussing this and the swimsuit problem," Artika, dressed modestly in a white jacket, t-shirt and jeans, said.

"I respect the point of view but let's see if the swimsuit is a big problem. It's only a small part of the competition," she said during a pageant media event in the Thai capital.

Back home, conservative Islamic leaders in the world's most populous Muslim nation have expressed outrage over Indonesia's first participant in a Miss Universe pageant since former dictator Suharto imposed a ban in the 1990s on taking part in international beauty pageants.

The influential and largely conservative Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) said it may come up with a fatwa, or instruction, prohibiting Indonesian Muslim women from competing in the pageant in future.

"It's pornography, and for that it's haram," said Ma'aruf Amin, chief of the MUI's Fatwa Commission, using an Arabic word that means outlawed by Islam.

"This kind of pageant violates religious values, especially Islam, and Indonesia is known as a religious society, so one should not go into any activities that are not in line with religious values."

"We will talk about this, and the possibility is in that direction," he said of the chances for a fatwa, which holds moral weight in Indonesia but has no standing in law.

Despite the outrage, photos of Artika frolicking in her one-piece swimsuit in Thailand were splashed across the front pages of many major Indonesian newspapers on Friday.

Most of the other 80 Miss Universe contestants are likely to wear more revealing bikinis when they take the stage for the swimsuit parade next week.

"All the contestants have the choice. It's nothing new, it's always been a option," said pageant president Paula Shugart.

She said Artika's participation in the contest was her own personal choice and Shugart praised her for it.

"She is a lovely young woman and very proud of her country and very proud to have the opportunity to be able to talk about her country," she said.