Earlier this month, the Sasakawa Leprosy Initiative team held an online meeting with Miss Supranational 2024, Miss Harashta Haifa Zahra, and Mister Supranational 2024, Mr. Fezile Thanda Mkhize, to kickstart the second year of partnership with Miss Supranational enterprise/ organization.
Our official partnership began last year when members of Sasakawa Leprosy Initiative joined the contestants of Miss Supranational 2023 in Krakow, Poland, to hold a forum on Hansen’s disease. At the forum, the contestants learnt about the disease itself and the deep-rooted problems of stigma and discrimination faced by persons affected by the disease.
We have since then been working together to spread awareness and correct knowledge about Hansen’s disease. One way of disseminating information that has proven to be most effective in reaching a large number of people across the globe has been sharing of posts on social media platforms. The message delivered by Miss Andrea Aguilera, Miss Supranational 2023, and 11 participants of Miss Supranational 2024 contest to mark the World Leprosy Day on 28th January this year garnered over 70,000 views within a matter of days. Miss Andrea has also visited persons affected by Hansen’s disease during her national tours to Brazil and Peru to listen to their experiences firsthand and share their stories on various media. Moreover, she has supported the efforts of MORHAN, a social movement of persons affected by Hansen’s disease in Brazil, to advocate for the preservation of the former colony of Itapuã by handing over a petition to the Governor of Rio Grande Do Sul, leading to the colony being declared a historical site days after her visit.
This year’s forum on Hansen’s disease in collaboration with Miss Supranational was attended by contestants from 65 countries on June 24, 2024. The event was held by online connecting the Initiative team and the Miss Supranational venue. During the group discussions, the contestants actively exchanged opinions about what they can do to tackle the multifaceted problems faced by persons affected by Hansen’s disease. It was extremely encouraging to witness a common drive among the contestants to use their platforms to reach and inform those who are not aware about the disease including the younger generations. Many contestants also stressed the importance of delivering the voice of persons affected by Hansen’s disease. The Instagram post of contestants sharing what they have learnt from the forum garnered over 128,000 views to date.
As the first of many collaborative initiatives that we plan on organizing with Miss Supranational, Miss Harashta will be travelling to South Sulawesi, Indonesia on Monday 26th and Tuesday 27th August to meet with persons affected by Hansen’s disease and raise awareness about the problems that they face. We look forward to continuing working with the representatives of Miss Supranational to realize a world where no one suffers as a result of Hansen’s disease.
