Miss Universe 2023, symbol of beauty and opposition, embarrasses those in power

Sheynnis Palacios has just been crowned Miss Universe and has become, despite herself, a symbol of resistance against power. This victory, celebrated in the country, inconveniences the current president, Daniel Ortega.

Sheynnis Palacios is Nicaraguan, she is 23 years old, with doe eyes and endless legs. 15 days ago, in El Salvador, she was elected Miss Universe 2023 among 83 competitors. Becoming the first woman from Central America to win the title. In Nicaragua, his triumph was celebrated like a FIFA World Cup victory with jubilant rallies in the streets of Managua, crowds waving flags and singing the national anthem at the top of their lungs.

And that’s already a problem, because under the police dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega, demonstrations have been banned since 2018. That year, a vast rebellion movement shook power, it was bloodily repressed and leaves 350 dead. That year, the flag with blue and white stripes brandished in demonstrations became the hated symbol of the opposition; deploying it today in public spaces inevitably leads you to prison.

Celebrating the Miss Universe election becomes a political act, because in 2018 Sheynnis Palacios participated in marches against the government. There are photos where we see her waving the famous flag. The vice president, Daniel Ortega’s wife, describes these photos as “terrorist communication” and the gatherings of the last days of “attempted coup d’état”.

His Instagram account exceeds 1.5 million subscribers

Obviously, since she entered the beauty queen circuit and stopped selling cassava fritters in the street with her mother to finance her studies, Sheynnis Palacios has never openly declared her hostility to the regime . But she has become – despite herself – a symbol of resistance. A modern Cinderella who brings hope to Nicaraguans plunged into poverty or in exile. His Instagram account exceeds one and a half million subscribers. So much so that the propaganda apparatus at the head of the State no longer knows whether to consider her as a traitor to the homeland or as an unexpected means of restoring Nicaragua’s image abroad.

The government prohibits him from returning to Nicaragua

Especially since before she won her title of Miss Universe, the regime did not want to hear about her. This is also the irony of this story. State television made fun of her, convinced that she would never win and the government banned her from returning to the country after the competition, in the same way that several hundred people were stripped of their nationality. people considered too critical. After congratulating her, Daniel Ortega finally seems to have opted for a tough position. Last Saturday, the national manager of Miss Universe who wanted to return was turned away at the airport and put on a flight to Mexico. The new Miss will not have the opportunity to check for herself. Her contract provides that she will reside for one year in New York.