Miss World Australia Esma Voloder reveals bullying over faith

Former Miss World Australia, Esma Voloder, has revealed the vicious attacks she received after winning the beauty pageant.

Former child refugee Esma Voloder has opened up about her struggle with crippling anxiety after winning Miss World Australia four years ago due to bullying.

The Bosnian-Australian model, who is Muslim, was viciously attacked by social media trolls who claimed she was “not Australian enough” to represent the nation after she won the 2017 beauty pageant.

“I’ve been bullied my whole life,” she said.

“When I won Miss World Australia, I was considered ‘not Australian enough’ and there was a lot of cyber bullying.

“There were negative comments about my heritage because I come from a Muslim background. I began to wonder, ‘Do I even want this now? Everyone will judge me’.”

Former Miss World Australia Esma Voloder at Bondi Beach. Picture: Toby Zerna

Voloder is a mental health ambassador. Picture: Toby Zerna

At the time, pageant organisers were bombarded with calls for Voloder, 29, to be replaced by a non-Muslim.

Miss World Australia national director, Deborah Miller, previously described the phone calls as “awful” and “mean”.

We have had lots of calls, people saying terrible things,” Miller said. “People have said: ‘How did you let a Muslim win?’ We believe Esma is a strong woman and represents a multicultural Australia.”

Prior to competing, Voloder, who has a Psychology degree, battled with other mental health struggles including panic attacks, acute stress disorder and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder stemming from a 2015 flight after her plane was caught in a sandstorm.

She’s now using her platform to raise awareness about mental health and hopes to inspire others who may be struggling.

The model will appear on the Mental Moments show this Thursday where she will further discuss her mental health challenges.

“I really want to help people. Caring for others means caring for yourself too,” she said.