With an article published by El Mundo, Emma Bonino,...

With an article published by El Mundo, Emma Bonino, former EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid, reacted strongly to the resolution approved by a commission of Spanish Parliamentarians and Senators calling for a boycott of the Miss World contest by the country's contestant.
In an open letter to the Spanish media, Bonino, who is also an honorary president of Hands Off Cain, said:
"With all due respect to the stand taken by the Spanish Parliament, I do not believe in boycotts as the best means to support the development of human rights and the abolition of the death penalty. In particular the boycott proposed against Nigeria is unjust and counterproductive and imay well be the death-knell of a fledgling democracy at this crucial moment. Moreover, by boycotting we would be playing into the hands of the Muslim fundamentalists who have declared the Miss World contest a blasphemous event that should not take place in Nigeria.
A Hands Off Cain delegation in Nigeria in mid-October visited Amina Lawal. It was her death-by-stoning sentence that prompted the calls for boycott, so they asked her whether she thinks Miss World contestants should boycott or not.
"She thought about it, then said, 'Let them come. I know things will work out because people are coming from all over the world to see me.
"For this reason we are asking Miss Spain, Lola Alcocer, and all the other contestants to participate in the contest in Abuja.
And we request the Spanish parliament and Spanish public opinion to support those contestants who have decided to do so. The show can provide an extraordinary opportunity to make the Nigerian authorities aware of our opposition to the death penalty and, moreover, give voice, hope and dignity to the many Aminas in other countries that are stoned, decapitated or hanged amidst the general indifference."