Filipino beauty queens: a new weapon in war on communism

In the Philippines, beauty queens don’t just wear swimsuits and talk about world peace, they’re being used as weapons against the world’s longest running communist insurgency

As part of operation ‘Magdalena Mission’ they are using their social media clout to lure young ladies away from the temptations of armed revolution. But critics say sinister motives lurk behind the pretty smiles

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Actress Arci Munoz is also a member of the Philippine air force reserves. Photo: Internet

Published: 9:30am, 14 Sep 2021Updated: 1:18am, 2 May 2023

For millions of young girls living in poverty in the Philippines, becoming a beauty queen is the rags-to-riches fantasy of choice when it comes to plotting a way out of the shanties.

They dream of becoming the next Catriona Gray or Pia Wurtzbach, much like their brothers might dream of becoming the next Manny Pacquiao.

And like the boxer-turned-senator, the Philippines punches above its weight when it comes to beauty contests, lagging only Venezuela as the country with most winners in the world’s Big Four beauty pageants (Miss World, Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Earth).

From an early age many will compete – with their parents’ blessings – in local beauty contests in the hope of being spotted and working their way up to those hallowed international stages. For the few who succeed, fame, riches and multimillion-strong Instagram fan bases await.

But getting there is no easy task. Budding beauty queens must do more than simply look good in a swimsuit. To succeed at the highest levels requires something more, and not just the cliched ability to wax lyrical about world peace. Indeed, in today’s Philippines, some beauty queens are being used as weapons against the world’s longest running communist insurgency.

Since the 1970s, government forces have been fighting the Communist Party of the Philippines and its paramilitary arm the New People’s Army, who want land to be redistributed back to the country’s farmers. This clash has cost tens of thousands of lives and is seen by the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte as representing the “biggest threat” to the country.

The Philippine army, in a hotly disputed claim, has suggested recently that the New People’s Army is on the brink of collapse from mass surrenders. Now the government is tapping women entertainment personalities to starve it of female support.