SYDNEY: Fashion week organisers have beaten off criticism for using under age models at the forthcoming event.
A public outcry erupted following news that 14-year-old Polish model Monica Jagaciak had been hired to strut the runways at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week (RAFW) from April 28 to May 2.
RAFW director Simon Lock said Australian designers had no intention of exploiting model's sexuality, adding that Jagaciak – who has previously fronted a campaign for French fashion house Hermes - had her parents' approval and would be chaperoned by an agent.
The furore echoes widespread public disapproval last year when 12-year-old Maddison Gabriel won a Gold Coast fashion competition.
A representative from renowned model agency Chadwick defended the use of young models, claiming that as long as the girls had "some sense of social intelligence and maturity", as well as parental consent and a chaperone, there was no harm in them being employed as models.
In the UK, London Fashion Week has banned under-16-year-olds from its catwalks and in France a licence is required before girls under 16 years of age can model.
No such licence is currently required in Australia.