Boycott may have prevented the model from walking the brand’s catwalk in China

With less than a week to go before the much-awaited  Victoria’s Secret fashion show , which will take place in  Shanghai , top model  Gigi Hadid declared on her Twitter  account   that she will no longer participate in the brand’s presentation:

“I’m upset that I won’t be able to go to China this year. I love my VS family, and I will be with all my girls in spirit!! I can’t wait to watch this beautiful show with everyone, which I know it will be, and I’m already looking forward to next year!”

The real reason for the top’s absence is still unknown, however, two theories are being circulated. The first would be due to a video that Gigi published earlier this year on her  Instagram , where she appears holding a statue of Buddha, laughing and imitating the symbol of  Asian culture.

Although the publication was removed,  the “joke” was seen by the Chinese in an offensive way and caused outrage among some internet users. On Twitter, several users even asked for the model to be removed from the  VS fashion show , and many used the  hashtag  #GigiGetOutChina(GigiForaDaChina)  as a form of protest. The second reason would be because she was unable to obtain a visa to enter China.

Other models will also not be able to model for the lingerie brand, including Ukrainian  Dasha Khlystun  and Russians  Irina Sharipova  and  Julia Belyakova  because their documents have not been approved.