Mirror Magazine

Mirror Magazine

For a better tomorrow
A beauty pageant designed to bring peace to the world: Harendra Alwis talks to the Sri Lankan representatives to find out more details
They gathered in Seoul, South Korea last July; ambassadors for peace and goodwill from 15 nations, to take part in the Mr. and Miss University International Beauty Pageant. Initiated in 1978 in Japan “as an endeavour for the restoration and redefinition of human beauty,” the pageant has grown with the years both in spreading its reach and towards achieving its objective of creating a new culture of peace and friendship among the world leaders of tomorrow.

Since 1991, the pageant has been bringing together students from every corner of the globe. The pageant provides an opportunity to celebrate and highlight the wide array of valued qualities in tomorrow’s leaders. In its mission to value human beauty in terms of physical features, personality and character, winners are appointed ‘Campus Peace Ambassadors for One Global Family,’ to spread the culture of peace in campuses.

This year, the pageant held a special significance for Sri Lanka as Mr. and Miss University Ishan Gammanpila from the Production Engineering Department of the University of Peradeniya and Nirodha de Silva from the Agricultural Faculty of the University of Peradeniya made a special impression at the event.

Having arrived in Korea after battling with airport authorities to save the knife which he was supposed to wear as part of the Kandyan ‘Nilame’ costume, Ishan says that the first day was one of introductions and ice-breaking. A cultural night was organised at the Sun Moon University in Cheonon where they met the other participants and discussed how to resolve conflicts.

Between war and peace
In the days that followed, the participants made a trip to the Demilitarisation Zone (DMZ) at the border, which separates the Korean peninsula. There they engaged in service projects together with Korean college students experiencing the apprehension that divides the two brother nations and the desire of the local people for peace. “The demilitarisation zones do not have any kids or teenagers, only old people. So the people were very happy to see some young faces,” recollects Ishan.

The end of their first day in the DMZ was marked by a tree-planting ceremony. Ishan says that it was a poignant moment when the participants made a circle around the tree of peace with rocks they had brought from their individual countries with the word ‘peace’ written on them in their native languages. During their stay, they were constantly engaged in group discussions about the conflict and what can be done to overcome this. On the last day, they were taken to a watchtower on the DMZ line, which was the closest point of safety between North and South Korea. Nirodha says, “We realised that there are so many questions that our history books could not answer.”

The world served on a platter
It has been said that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Ishan and Nirodha link many memories with the various types of food they savoured. From the steaming dishes of Buryani to Kimchi (fermented cabbage), Octopus, Kimbap (rice and meat stuffed in seaweed) and rice cakes to the dish of snails and grasshoppers, Ishan claims that the food itself “was a marvellous way of discovering that part of the world.”

The preliminaries
They left the DMZ and journeyed back for the competition and the pageant, which was to be held at the Hilton Convention Centre in Seoul. At the preliminary talent contest, Nirodha and Ishan performed Kandyan dances which impressed not only the judges but also the Japanese production team of the pageant. The second half of the preliminary competition saw the participants making speeches based on topics of their choice. Nirodha’s speech on “World Peace” captivated the audience, as did Ishan’s on “Championing Diversity”.

Showtime
The “big day” arrived before anybody could fully prepare for it. After grand welcomes, the ambassadors of peace and goodwill from Korea, Japan, America, Philippines, Thailand, Brazil, Hungary, Columbia, Russia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Tianjin China, Chinese Taipei, Kenya and Lebanon took the stage in the presence of world renowned dignitaries. Dr. Kyung Jun Lee, President of Sun Moon University, gave the welcoming speech saying, “this contest aims to pursue the true beauty of humanity – the value in beauty that goes on the idea of living for the sake of others.” One of the showpieces for the evening soon followed where the candidates paraded in their formal wear.

Finally the top 10 finalists were announced as the audience erupted with applause with each name that was called out. They were Mr. America, Mr. Chinese Taipei, Mr. Kenya, Mr. Korea, Mr. Sri Lanka, Ms. America, Ms. Chinese Taipei, Ms. Hungary, Ms. Kenya, and Ms. Tianjin China. Ishan could not find words to describe the pride he felt when he was selected a finalist.

The moment that everyone had eagerly awaited came. Mr. Nepal, Nitesh Karki and Ms. America, April Deller won awards for excellence in service and participation. After a drum roll that virtually lasted an eternity, Mr. Chinese Taipei, Yi-Cheng Hu and Ms. Kenya, Robai Musilivi Khamasi were crowned Mr. and Miss University 2004, a title which they will carry for twelve months during which they will cross the oceans and travel as campus ambassadors to spread goodwill and peace across borders. Ishan and Miss Hungary – Gabriella Klausz were voted Mr. and Miss Friendship by the contestants themselves. This was the most fitting tribute to all Sri Lankans, known for their friendliness and perpetual smiles.

“The farewell party was one filled with tears,” Ishan remembers. Nirodha adds, “We danced all night, sang karaoke and everybody cried their eyes out!” What’s so special about Mr. and Miss University International? Maybe it’s the atmosphere or it could even be the many activities that bond these strangers together in such a short time. Maybe this amazing glue that bonds us together as humans is abundant in our hearts; we just use many different words to describe it.

Ishan and Nirodha were selected to represent Sri Lanka in 2001 when they were respectively crowned Mr. and Miss University Sri Lanka. Their trip was made possible largely due to the support of their families and sponsors. Together they have been able to reach out to the world in an effort to realise the dream of a global family so that peace and brotherhood may prevail. Nirodha sums it up when she declares, “Even though we met as competitors at this pageant, we left as friends who had a mission to make a difference in the world.” Says Ishan, “Parting was very emotional. We still keep in touch as if we had been best friends all our lives,” he says, “I believe this experience opened my mind to many issues of this world that I hardly noticed and made me realise that it doesn’t take much to make a difference – just sincere hearts that are bound by friendship and the able hands of youth.”

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