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Friday, August 18, 2006
Maxey: Hiyas sa Kadayawan 2006
By Ram Maxey
Bar None
BARELY 24 hours after the event was unceremoniously scrapped by organizers, the Hiyas sa Kadayawan Festival 2006 pageant has a winner: Kristine Grace Maambong, 23, BS Economics graduate of the University of the Philippines-Mindanao was crowned last Wednesday evening at SM City.
As Davao City's spokesmodel, "Kitten" -- as she is fondly called by family and friends -- will promote the image of her city, as well as Mindanao, during her one year reign. After that, what happens next?
A lot of people are asking the same question. Will there be a Hiyas sa Kadayawan 2007? This last one almost did not happen after organizers arbitrarily cancelled the whole event following Mayor Rodrigo Duterte's directive that the three male contestants be disqualified from what has been traditionally been a competition for females only.
But the organizers, seemingly out of spite for having been rebuffed by the mayor's directive, scrapped the competition altogether to the consternation of many who were looking forward to one of the annual festival's attractions. Certainly, the uncalled for scrapping disappointed the young female finalists who had prepared hard and long for it.
The scrapping did not sit well with the mayor, however. Citing tradition, he directed that the competition be continued and everyone heaved a sigh of relief. Everyone, except for a few. The women members of the City Council who had labored to craft together the Women's Development Code had rejoiced over the cancellation of the pageant. They claim that beauty contests tend to "commodify" women, whatever that means. However, their euphoria was short-lived after the mayor restored the contest.
But we haven't heard the last of it. These anti-beauty contest advocates may be outnumbered by the rest of us who are either for it, or don't give a hoot, but they won't go down without a fight. As one of them said, following the restoration of the pageant: "It only shows that there is still a great need to educate the public on the Women's Development Code."
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (August 18, 2006 issue)
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