AFTER two weeks of pageantry, newly-crowned Hibiscus Queen Ryhelle Aisea says she is looking forward to a year of advocating on the topic of inclusivity.
The National Fire Authority representative spent a relaxed morning with her fellow contestants at the Holiday Inn in Suva yesterday where they were given their prizes and gifts.
Speaking to The Fiji Times, she said she was so blessed with all the support she had received over the past week — from locals and the Fijian diaspora overseas.
However, her experience may have been slightly marred by the bullying she received from some online users after winning Best Traditional Attire on Fijian Night.
She said despite deactivating her social media accounts during the pageant week, hearing about the online comments hurt as she realised that there were people that still failed to see the idea behind a traditional attire.
“I was honestly very hurt at the beginning because the idea of the traditional attire was to celebrate the handiwork that was done on the outfits and praise the presentation part of it,” Ryhelle said.
“I feel that people were just too lost in the bold words of iTaukei Night, that they failed to recognise that aspect, but I wanted to showcase all the hard work that was put in, all the efforts that were made.”
However, she then realised that one bad comment could not outweigh the many support and praises received during the festival.
“I realised that everyone is entitled to their own opinion and that one bad comment cannot outweigh the many who praised. We cannot change that; we can only try to take it as positive critics and just move on with life.”
Her parents, Michael and Zinny Aisea echoed the sentiment, and had advised other family not to respond to negative comments online.
“I wasn’t really that happy, but then I realised that it’s freedom of speech and everything has the right to their own opinion,” Mrs Aisea said.
Mr Aisea said it was wise for Ryhelle to deactivate her account early, as it kept online distractions at bay.
