news agency
HELSINKI (AFP) – The Finnish government is facing intense pressure and accusations of racism from several Asian countries after its representative in the Miss Universe 2025 competition was seen pulling the corners of her eyes in a photo, and some Finnish politicians posted their own photos repeating the gesture.
Sara Dzavsi lost the Miss Finland crown last week after a photo of her pulling skin at the corners of her eyes, posted on social media, went viral late last month. Governments and commentators across Finland and Asia have condemned the photo, and the caption “Eating with a Chinese man”, as discrimination against Asians.
Dzavs, who won Miss Finland last September, told Finnish media that she was trying to relieve a headache. She said a friend shared the private photo and wrote the caption without sharing it, the Helsinki Times reported. Dzafce did not respond to The Associated Press’ request for comment Thursday.
Dzavci posted an apology on social media on December 8, saying he never intended to hurt anyone.
“The title of Miss Finland is not just a crown for me, but also a responsibility. A responsibility for the way I speak, how I act, and how my actions can affect people,” she wrote in Finnish.
He added: “I take responsibility for my actions and will learn from that.”
Days later, the Miss Finland Organization canceled the title of Miss Finland 2025, known as Miss Suomi in Finnish.
“The events of the past few days have caused deep pain, disappointment and anxiety both in Finland and internationally, which is completely understandable,” the organization wrote on social media. “We are deeply sorry for the harm these events have caused. Especially to the Asian community, but also to all those affected. Racism is never acceptable in any form.”
The controversy intensified when many far-right Finnish politicians rallied in support of Dzavici after he lost his crown. Members of Parliament who are part of the ruling coalition posted their own photos pulling the skin around their eyes.
The uproar spread across Asia, prompting Finnish Prime Minister Petri Orpo to issue an apology to several countries, including Japan and South Korea, through statements in their languages posted on the social media accounts of Finnish embassies.
“These posts do not reflect Finland’s values of equality and inclusion,” Urbo’s statement said. “Racism and discrimination have no place in Finnish society. Our message in Finland and to all our friends abroad is that the government takes racism seriously and is committed to fighting the problem. Finland always aims to do better. It is the responsibility of politicians to set an example in this regard.”
The Japanese government contacted the Finnish embassy in Tokyo to express its concerns.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara, the government’s chief spokesman, said Japan hopes to maintain close contacts with Helsinki.
“I understand that the Finnish Prime Minister issued a statement in which he expressed his deepest apologies for the recent insulting posts made by some parliamentarians on social media,” Kihara said. He added: “As a Japanese government, we expressed through the local embassy our concern about this issue and our expectations for an appropriate response.”
Finland is a major tourist destination for visitors from Asia, and some users on the social media platform X have called for a boycott of travel to Finland and Finnair, the country’s largest airline.
Paivit Tallqvist, the airline’s senior vice president of communications, told Finnish radio station Yle that the scandal had hurt the airline’s international operations, without providing details.
___
This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative AI tool.