her father to see her face.
When she entered Miss World 2016, the
Canadian was under no illusions about coming
home with the crown. Getting on stage would be
enough: the final is broadcast around the globe,
including in her native China, where her father
has been harassed and prevented from leaving
since 2015 .
In the end she appeared on screen for all of six
seconds, during her introduction. For the rest of
the show she was tucked away at the back of
the crowd of contestants, or at the corners of
the stage.
"It was really too naive to think that my father
could see me," Lin said.
If she is slightly bitter, it's with good reason. Her
sliver of screen time was bought with months of
practice and rehearsal, and, most painfully for an
outspoken human rights activist, her silence.
During the competition, Lin said she was placed
under a communication blackout and forbidden
from speaking to journalists, part of what
analysts say is a pattern of western companies
cooperating with China to silence critics
overseas.
Miss World chairwoman Julia Morley said the
organization did "our best to assist Miss Lin and
have done absolutely nothing to prevent her
doing everything she wanted to do."
