THE Miss Pacific Islands Pageant is a very unique platform, unlike typical western world pageants, the reigning Miss Pacific, Moemoana Schwenke of Samoa says.
Miss Schwenke was speaking at a press conference in Honiara on Sunday.
“It’s important to note that the Miss Pacific Island Pageant is very unique in the world and it is not like any other beauty pageant that you see typically in the west.
“The MPIP is all about preserving, promoting and perpetuating our Pacific Islands cultures, celebrating our Pacific women and their beauty which comes in all forms.
“The MPIP is rooted in our Pacific cultures and therefore allows youths – both boys and girls – to have a role model to look up to and be positively influenced, creating a stronger and more sustainable Pacific region.”
“I’m am very honoured to be the Miss Pacific Islands and it’s one of the greatest honours in my life, not only as a woman, but as a pacific person.
“This MPIP platform is very empowering in our region, it might come in the shape and the form of a pageant, but it’s more than that.
“It’s about finding the beauty in our cultures and the beauty in our people and promoting it to each other so that we can truly believe with all of our hearts that we are powerful, we come from greatness.”
Miss Schwenke added, the Pacific people are always attributed to the land sizes – small places that are just like tiny dots on the map.
But she added, “I hope and pray that our pacific people see themselves for who we truly are, we come from the greatest ocean in the world, we come from the greatest navigators in the world, we can make resources and treasures from the very land we live on. We can survive and maintain happy and sustainable lives just from the fish in the sea and the plants that we grow.”
As such, Miss Schwenke further highlighted that it is so important that Pacific Islanders maintain its traditions in a world that is forever changing.
“And big countries always tell us that we are not good enough, or we don’t have enough.
“It’s always important for our young generations to see that they can do it, they can be leaders and serve in their villages, they can be leaders and serve in any country in the world.
“We can empower our young women to believe in themselves and take up a platform like this then imagine how many more young women in the region that they can inspire.
“Often, our women in the Pacific go through many challenges. There’s a lot of social challenges. They’re not always represented in leadership, but here we are in the Solomon Islands on a platform that puts our women first and if we go back into our stories.
“Our women were the warriors, they were often the people who pioneered new ideas and maintained our cultures and here we are giving power to our women.”
Miss Schwenke’s tenure will conclude on Saturday 8 February when she hands over the crown to the winner of the MPIP2025.
By IAN LADDS OSO
Solomon Star, Honiara
