Angel Lama makes history by becoming the first-ever transgender woman to be a finalist in the Himalayan nation’s most glamorous annual event- Miss Universe Nepal.

Nepal is among the few countries in the world that accept trans contestant in their national pageants and only the third in Asia after Myanmar and Mongolia according to LGBT+ activists.

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This only came after the new management changed the criteria for height, weight, and appearance. The new management has now allowed  “bold, beautiful and confident woman” between 18 and 28 years to participate.

Angel Lama, 21 years old told Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview, “I have come to Miss Universe Nepal to show the diversity of people in the society.”

“If I stand on that stage and showcase this, that will be the biggest crown ever,” she added.

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The majority of Hindu Nepal is comparatively more accepting of the LGBT+ people and after the decade-long Maoist insurgency that ended in 2006 and the monarchy was abolished a few years after that.

Nagma Shrestha, national director of the Miss Universe Nepal organization said,  “everyone is equal, whatever their sexual orientation”.

She said, “If they say they are women, they are women, and they should be treated like women.”

The changed rules now allow trans women to compete and this is a great step for LGBT+ people.

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