‘10-dash line’ graphics irk pageant fans in Vietnam
Beauty pageants have been associated with “world peace” as a rallying point by promoting camaraderie among nations. But a recent international contest earned the ire of a particular group of people so intense that organizers had to issue an apology while the final competition was still running.
Vietnamese fans rose in indignation against the Miss Global Organization for using graphics during its final competition program that show the Chinese government’s “10-dash line” that encroaches on territories that Vietnam claims. The ceremonies were staged at the Mall Lifestyle Ngamwongwan in Nonthaburi, Thailand, on Sunday night.
“We sincerely apologize for any offense caused by the graphic material we recently shared. It was never our intention to misrepresent or disregard Vietnam’s sovereignty or the sensitivities surrounding territorial matters,” the international organizers posted on social media just as the semifinalists were competing onstage.
“We deeply respect Vietnam and its people, and we acknowledge the importance of being more careful when selecting visual materials, especially on topics of historical and national significance,” continued the statement.
‘Encroachment’
The controversial geographical introduction from Beijing also encroaches on the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ), but only a few Filipinos took up the cudgels for the country on the pageant’s social media pages. The uproar from Vietnamese fans were far louder.
In 2023, the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam rejected as baseless a map released by China that denotes its claims to sovereignty including in the South China Sea.
China released the map of its U-shaped line covering about 90 percent of the South China Sea and loops as far as 1,500 km (932 miles) south of its Hainan island and cuts into the EEZs of Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia.
This 2023 map was different to a narrower version submitted by China to the United Nations in 2009 of the South China Sea that included its so-called “nine-dash line.”
The latest map was of a broader geographical area and had a line with 10 dashes that included democratically governed Taiwan, similar to a 1948 map of China. China also published a map with a 10th dash in 2013.
Jubilation
The Vietnamese indignation during the pageant, however, shifted to jubilation at the culmination of the competition as Miss Vietnam, Nguyen Đình Nhu Vân, received the 2025 Miss Global crown.
She bested 61 other aspirants from all over the world to succeed Puerto Rico’s Ashley Melendez, who won in the contest held in 2023. No pageant was mounted last year.
Mutya ng Pilipinas Xena Ramos finished in the Top 5 and was proclaimed fourth runner-up. “It’s such a privilege to even compete internationally, and moreso to get a placement, get a crown for the Philippines,” she told the Inquirer after the competition.
“It’s a blessing for me to be able to wave the flag on the international stage. And I couldn’t be any more grateful. I’m happy to have contributed something for the country,” the architect-actress continued in a mix of English and Filipino.
To date, the Philippines has posted one victory in the Miss Global pageant, courtesy of Shane Tormes who won in the contest’s ninth edition held in Indonesia in 2022. —WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH
