Miss Singapore Bernadette Belle Ong What used to be a parade about cultural diversity, the national costume presentation of this year’s Miss Universe became a platform for political statements for some candidates. And Filipino netizens, pageant fans or not, can’t help but salute the ladies that wore their causes on the stage of the prestigious pageant. Here are some of the standouts: Miss Singapore Singaporean beauty queen Bernadette Belle Ong stood for all Asians around the world as she campaigns to #StopAsianHate with her costume. Made by Filipino designer Arwin Meriales, the costume took only two days to be finished. Much like a protest banner, the “Stop Asian Hate” statement on her cape was handpainted by artist Paulo Espinosa.