Miss Grand International pageant’s flag gaffe puts Nikki de Moura in tight spot

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has one of the most tedious, albeit confusing, flag protocols in the world. And what makes the Philippine national flag unique is that it has specific hoisting guidelines depicting either a moment of peace, or of war.

Nikki De Moura, the Philippines’ representative in the 2023 Miss Grand International pageant taking place in Vietnam, was recently photographed waving a Philippine flag with the wrong end attached on a stick. What appalled netizens and pageant watchers even more was that the red stripe was on the upper portion, signifying a time of war under the national heraldic code.

Eagle-eyed pageant observers also noted that the flag the 19-year-old De Moura waved still had white borders about an inch thick, whereas the other countries’ flags were appropriately cut around the edges. This prompted some followers to believe that the Philippine flag seen in photographs was a rush job.

The images were taken from the delegates’ visit to the Ambassador Cruise Halong in Ha Long Bay in Ho Chi Minh City on Oct. 10. The pageant posted a live video of the event on Facebook and Instagram. It was not shown when the ladies received their respective flags during the event, but they were already holding theirs when they were queuing up on the red carpet, on their way to a stage for group photos.

Images of De Moura waving the wrongly designed flag quickly spread in pageant circles, earning a multitude of comments.

Some pointed out that the Philippines is going to war in a pageant whose tagline is “stop the war.”

Others were a bit harsh on the 19-year-old model and brought out her mixed lineage, saying she was not aware of the flag protocol because she is “not pure Filipino.” The country’s bet is Brazilian-Filipino, who represented Cagayan De Oro City in the national pageant, and also when she joined the 2019 Miss Teen Philippines competition where she also won.

Just last September 24, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) reissued its guidelines on the proper use and display of the national flag for the benefit of Filipino delegation of athletes who were then to compete for the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. It was originally posted in May for the 2023 Southeast Asian Games held in Cambodia.

The commission, in its post, shared the “dos and don’ts on the proper use and display” of the national flag under Republic Act No. 8491, or the “Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines.” The NHCP, however, said, “these are guidelines, not rules and regulations. Nobody’s ever going to file a criminal case against anyone if they commit a flag protocol boo-boo.”

Meanwhile, several other practices made by Filipino pageant contestants on the use of the Philippine flag are also in violation RA 8491, but netizens were surprisingly quiet in those instances. For one, the national flag should not be allowed to touch the ground. But with many of our delegates having the flag printed on their luggage covers, chances are, the flag’s image had touched the floor at one point during handling.

The law also clearly states that the flag cannot be printed, painted on, or attached to handkerchiefs, cushions, and other articles of merchandise. But nobody tooted the horn when images of the candidates’ sendoff at airports showed their luggage bearing the flag.

But regardless of the Filipinos’ passionate reaction to the flag faux pas, de Moura is not likely to get a sanction.

“The NHCP usually reserves legal action only in the most blatant and flagrant of cases. We are not as fussy nor as pedantic as most people perceive us to be,” the agency added in their social media post.

De Moura will try to inherit the Miss Grand International title from reigning Brazilian queen Isabella Menin, and score the Philippines’ first victory in the Thailand-based global tilt. The new winner will be crowned at the Phu Tho Indoor Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City on Oct. 25. EDV