Nov. 27 (UPI) — Miss South Africa won the Miss Universe pageant Sunday night, marking the first time that country has received the honor since 1978.
Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters beat 91 other women from around the world to take home the Miss Universe crown. The 22-year-old business management graduate said she is an advocate of self-defense for women and hopes to make it part of her platform as Miss Universe.
During the question and answer session of the program, which was recorded in Las Vegas and hosted by Steve Harvey, Nel-Peters also said women should be paid the same as men in the workplace.
“In some places, women get paid 75 percent of what men earn for doing the same job, working the same hours — and I do not believe that this is right,” she said.
The runner-up to Nel-Peters was Colombia’s Laura Gonzalez, and the second runner-up Jamaica’s Davina Bennett.
