While Colombia’s Senate was supposed to dedicate itself to debating an ongoing suspension of peace talks, one of the senators baffled the crowd with his plea to award the newly elected Miss Colombia with a Medal of Congress.
The debate on the peace process crisis was becoming ever more fervent when Antonio Guerra de la Espriella of the coalition Radical Change party stepped to the podium to announce his proposal to officially decorate Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez with a Medal of Congress.
Most of the Tuesday night session, the congressmen debated the concept of prior consultations with ethnic groups and expressed their different views on the crisis in peace process with rebel group FARC. The highlight was another scuffle between ex-president Alvaro Uribe and his ardent critic Ivan Cepeda of Polo Democratico Alternativo.
De la Espriella had a whole different cause for concern. Just when the gathered audience expected the congressman from Sucre state to express his stance on previously discussed matters, the politician left everybody at sea.
“In spite of the troubling news pertaining to public order that our country has received in the recent days, it is important to remember there are other events that have been recently concluded and that have traditionally been part of our culture. One of such cultural hallmarks is the indisputable beauty of our women, which was celebrated during the 80th annual Beauty Queen contest on Monday.” reads the official statement de la Espriella submitted on Tuesday.
Later in the motion, the congressman highlighted the importance of the decision to crown Ariadna Gutierrez as the first ever representative of the Sucre state to win the coveted award. As a “Sucreño”, de la Espriella reaffirmed the pride of the whole state with this milestone and insisted it deserved appropriate recognition from the state.
Among the arguments made by the legislator to honor Gutierrez with the Medal of Congress were her “discipline, preparation and performance as the queen” as well as the fact that the new Miss Colombia was also awarded the “Best face”, “Miss elegance” and “Queen of the Police” distinctions.
While beauty pageants in other countries have long lost their glory, Miss Colombia continues to be one of the most important cultural events of the year.