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Miss Indonesia Zivanna Letisha Siregar won the online poll of more than 50,000 who voted for their favorite contestants in the Miss Universe pageant, which ran over the weekend in the Bahamas.

But it was Venezuelan Stefania Fernandez who walked away with the coveted crown on Sunday after she was selected from 83 young women representing various countries.

Many Indonesians, hopes raised by the online showing, reacted in disbelief when the 12 judges overlooked Zivanna, not even selecting her as one of 15 finalists.

“Why oh why Zivanna Letisha Siregar from Indonesia didn’t even make it to top 15??? She should’ve been crowned Miss Universe 2009!!” wrote stellaaprilia on Twitter.

Valkyrie, on the Jakarta Globe Web site, felt Ziavanna’s efforts were underappreciated: “She chose the perfect character to portray in her cultural presentation … It’s not only the bikini parade, but there are other tested attributes which a contestant must go through. Let us try focus on the positive aspects.”

It was Venezuela’s sixth Miss Universe crown in the 59-year history of the pageant. Famous for its beauty queens, the South American nation has accumulated more international beauty pageant titles than any other country. It produced five previous Miss Universe winners in 1979, 1981, 1986, 1996 and 2008 and also won the Miss World contest five times. Only the United States has won more Miss Universe titles with seven. Some girls in Venezuela begin training to become beauty queens from as young as 5 and the country’s pageant industry has drawn criticism for pressuring contestants to have cosmetic surgery.

Fernandez, 18, inherited the Miss Universe crown from another Venezuelan, Dayana Mendoza, who won the competition in 2008. During her reign, Mendoza traveled the globe as an advocate for HIV/AIDS education, research and legislation. Her successor is expected to do the same.

“We Venezuelans never tire. We made history today,” Mendoza said in a telephone interview with Venezuelan media after the event. “It was almost impossible, but Stefania did an excellent job.”

She admitted that at the moment of transferring the crown she whispered in the ear of Fernandez, “You made it, witch!” and gave her an affectionate pat on the backside.

Two other young women from Latin America made it into the top five: 23-year-old Ada de la Cruz of the Dominican Republic and Mayra Matos, 20, of Puerto Rico.

Despite her strong showing online, Indonesia’s Zivanna failed to make it to the bathing suit round, in which the 15 finalists paraded in matching bikinis, “showing off a lot of skin,” as the announcer said, “but only in the right places.”

The Indonesian beauty led the online poll sponsored by the pageant when it was closed because of “excessive” response, but Internet support was clearly a poor predictor of success: two other contestants with strong online backing, Miss Brazil and Miss Guatemala, also failed to reach the top 15.

Twenty-year-old Zivanna, nicknamed Zizi, is from Jakarta. In a March interview, she told the Jakarta Globe that she hoped to represent Indonesia’s motto, “Unity in Diversity,” as a Miss Universe contestant.

She also talked about her passion for environmental issues.

“I always turn off the lights in my house if they are not being used. I also turn off the air conditioner at night,” she said. “To participate in any action to help save Mother Earth means something.”

Miss Venezuela, Stefania Fernandez, was crowned the winner after an evening gown segment and a question-and-answer session. The Miss Congeniality title went to Miss China, Wang Jingyao, while Miss Thailand, Chutima Durongdej, won Miss Photogenic.

The top group also included candidates from Australia and Kosovo. Representatives of the Czech Republic, Switzerland, France, South Africa and the United States made it to the top 10. As the new Miss Universe, Fernandez will receive a monetary prize, the size of which has been kept confidential.

The prize also includes a $100,000 scholarship to study acting at an school in New York, a five-day vacation package in the Bahamas for two, a set of jewelry and complete wardrobe. But the main attraction for contestants is the opportunity to break into, and establish themselves in, the lucrative world of show business, organizers said. “Women who seek the title of Miss Universe are driven by their desires to open for themselves new opportunities in the world of acting and entertainment,” Acirema Alayeto, president of Miss Latin America Organization, told Agence France-Presse.

Each contestant was judged in three categories: swimsuit, evening gown and interview, as they vied for the coveted title.

The pageant, broadcast by the US NBC network, was viewed by an estimated worldwide audience of approximately one billion people.

Jakarta Globe, AP, AFP