Miss Papua New Guinea loses her crown over twerking video

After a TikTok video showed Miss Papua New Guinea Lucy Maino twerking, the beauty queen has been stripped of her crown. Lucy had also served as co-captain of Papua New Guinea's women’s football team. Critics of the move say that such action is proof of the culture of misogyny and sexism in the island country. As per reports, Lucy Maino, 25, shared a video of herself twerking on her private TikTok account. And according to The Guardian, after the clip was downloaded from her private account and shared widely on social media, it sparked intense criticism and consequently, Lucy had to face online harassment. 

And while such twerking videos are a common sight on the platform, Lucy's video was singled out because netizens felt the dance was "inappropriate" for a "role model".  Following the backlash on social media, the Miss Pacific Islands Pageant PNG (MPIP PNG) committee, this week, “released” Maino from her duties of representing the country as a cultural ambassador and an advocate for women.“Our core purpose is empowerment of women. We are a unique pageant style platform that promotes cultural heritage, traditional values and sharing through tourism about our country and people,” the committee said in a statement cited by The Guardian. “MPIP PNG promotes the virtues of confidence, self-worth, integrity, and community service with a parallel focus on education,” the statement reads. Miss Papua New Guinea’s role involves acting as a cultural ambassador for the country and an advocate for women.