joel.julien@guardian.co.tt
Standing as one of the final five contestants in the Miss World T&T competition on Sunday night, Miss Maracas Valley Ache Abrahams was given 30 seconds to provide a solution to one of the perennial problems plaguing this country.
“If you were the Prime Minister of T&T, how would you address the rising crime rate?” host Jason Williams asked.
The crowd inside the Lord Kitchener Auditorium at the National Academy for the Performing Arts in Port-of-Spain groaned when they heard the question.
But Abrahams appeared to be unaffected by the question and simply turned to the crowd and flashed a quick smile before she responded to Williams.
“Well, unfortunately, this has been an issue that we still need to fix but I think being in any position of power, we need to be aware what is happening on the ground.
“And a lot of the time, crime stems from socio-economic difficulties and that is what we need to be mindful of because it is easy to judge the actions but how about we focus on the root of the issue,” she said.
The crowd cheered when they heard her answer.
Up to that point, Abrahams had been among the favourites expected to walk away with the crown after capturing some of the night’s other prizes, including the Fitness Award and the Digital Media Ambassador Award.
But after her answer on crime, the crowd felt certain who their new queen would be.
They got that confirmation moments later when host Jynnyn Edwards announced that Abrahams was the winner.
Miss Cunupia Dania Duntin and Miss Arima Jemima Pierre were respectively announced as the first and second runners-up, while Miss Claxton Bay Janelle Pirmal and Miss San Juan Savannah Sandy rounded out the top five.
Abrahams succeeds last year’s winner Jeanine Brandt and will represent T&T at the 71st Miss World pageant next year.
Speaking to Guardian Media yesterday, Abrahams further explained her thought process in tackling crime and leading with empathy.
“I meant what I said because it is so easy to look at the things that are happening and how people act in terms of crime, but we don’t look at the situation in terms of what is happening in the community and why does it lead to that point,” she said.
“So, I think that it is important that we really focus on it because instead of shifting blame, we should focus on how can we eradicate the issue and a lot of the times that is something much more.
“We need to lead with empathy and understanding before anything else. When you have empathy and understanding, it gives you the space to now say ‘okay this is the situation and clearly this is not working, so how do we find a resolution for it, how do we solve the issue’ because I realise it is easy for us to say them against us and us against them.”
Abrahams acknowledged that her coronation on Sunday night was the start of hard work to come.
But she said she was looking forward to it, as “pressure creates diamonds.”
Abrahams, 23, is a creative artist and mental health advocate.
Her Beauty with a Purpose project, “Safe Space,” focused on the issue of destigmatising mental health.
“There is no health without mental health,” she said.
Abrahams graduated from St Joseph’s Convent in St Joseph before attending the Identity School of Acting in London.
Abrahams said her goal is to eventually become an actress.
