Efe Tokyo

Tokyo

Updated Thursday, January 25, 2024-13:02

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The choice of Carolina Shiino, a naturalized Japanese of Ukrainian parents, as the winner in this year's edition of Miss Japan has generated a debate about identity on the country's social networks due to the young woman's Western roots.

Shiino, a 26-year-old model, was crowned Miss Japan on the 22nd by

a panel of 30 judges who voted on the "Japanese beauty" of the 12

aspiring finalists, taking into consideration three aspects: internal, physical and behavioral.

"It's like a dream. The moment I heard my name I couldn't stop crying," said Shiino in her first statements after being chosen Miss Japan, a victory for which she is very grateful for making her feel "

fully recognized as a Japanese." ".

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Shiino arrived in Japan when she was 5 years old and

in 2020 she obtained Japanese nationality

through naturalization.

The Miss Japan Contest pageant allows any single woman between 17 and 26 years old who has Japanese nationality to participate.

The election of Shiino as Miss Japan generated debate on the country's social networks around the consideration of identity and beauty that are considered 'genuinely' Japanese.

"What's so Japanese about Miss Japan?"

wrote one user in recent hours, when the news began to spread, while another pointed out next to a photo of Shiino: "This person is not even half Japanese, her parents are Ukrainian and she was born in Ukraine. Is this Miss Japan? "Separate 'discrimination' from 'differentiation'. Japan is not a country like the United States."

Other users reflected: "What's wrong with a Japanese person being elected Miss Japan?"

or "There are many Japanese people who don't value Japan, so what's wrong with appreciating the country you've lived in since childhood, becoming naturalized and accepting the challenge as a Japanese and winning Miss Japan?", along with a video of the winner saying that she wants to "end her days as a Japanese."

For her part, the historian Hiroe Yamashita shared Carolina Shiino's victory today on her profile on the social network

"Racial discrimination should never be tolerated, but if we are going to compete for appearance under the concept of Miss Japan, I personally believe it should be under a Japanese beauty standard. Against Carolina Shiino's physique, a pure-blooded Japanese has no possibility of winning according to

modern beauty standards

," he commented.

Model Ariana Miyamoto's victory at the 2015 edition of Miss Universe Japan sparked a similar debate.

Miyamoto, whose mother was Japanese and father African-American, generated a sensation and controversy due to her mixed race, and was subject to harassment by certain groups in the country, one of the most racially homogeneous in the world.