Meet Mr Gay Belgium’s first ever Muslim finalist
Abdellah Bijat, 22, has become the first Muslim man to be a finalist in Mr. Gay Belgium.
Bijat, who’s of Moroccan origin, has told Belgian radio station Studio Brussel: “I want to show that 2016 should be a feasible year for the existence of different cultures, including Islam, in order to live in peace.
“It should be feasible for everyone to accept people as they are.”
To have a Muslim become a finalist in Mr. Gay Belgium is of significance for the country, as Bijat has pointed out, there are currently “asylum seekers in Belgium because of their sexual orientation,” which is prohibited in their culture.
According to MoroccoWorldNews.com, Mr. Gay Belgium organisers have said there were Muslim candidates who came to auditions in the past but would drop out due to fear. However Bijat has said it’s been a “delight to receive positive feedback from his family and his friends from Belgium and the Middle East.”
If wins Mr Gay Beligum, Abdellah will go on to represent his home nation in Mr Gay World, set to take place in Malta on May 28.
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