An Ethiopian beauty queen who was due to represent her country in a Malaysian pageant is being held under quarantine after arriving without health documents, an official said today.

Dina Fekadu Mosissa, who was detained after flying into Kuala Lumpur today, will be held under observation for four days, disease control division chief Ramli Rahmat told AFP .

"It is part of our health regulations," he said, adding that "if she is okay after the four-day period, she can come into the country."

Ramli said the regulation was designed to prevent yellow fever from breaking out in Malaysia.

Mosissa is being held by health authorities at a quarantine centre near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, south of the capital.

Marred by controversies

The incident is the second to marr this month's Miss Tourism pageant in Kuching, Sarawak.

On Monday, Miss Tibet Tashi Yangchen bowed out of the contest after the organisers caved into Chinese demands that she only be allowed to compete in the sash of "Miss Tibet-China", a proposal which Tibetan officials rejected.

Miss Tourism pageant organiser Alaric Soh complained that Malaysian authorities had handled Mosissa's situation badly.

"We were not able to reach them (health authorities) at all to know about her situation," he said in a statement.

"It is hard to for us to understand how we could promote tourism in Malaysia under such circumstances," he said.

The pageant which started over the weekend will hold its finale on July 23 in the oil-rich city of Miri.