A congratulatory graphic of the newly crowned Reina Hispanoamericana 2025, Dia Maté, was removed from social media after being flagged by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP).
The agency on Monday, February 10, flagged a Facebook post of The LaSallian (TLS), the student publication of De La Salle University, after it posted an image of the Philippine flag in hanging position with the red field on the left.
The NHCP cited Republic Act 8991 or the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines, which mandates that the blue field should be on the left side of the observer if it is in a hanging position. This should be done during times of “peace.”
The law said that the red field should only be on the left side of the observer in hanging position in times of “war.”
Red is a color typically associated with battle and warfare, while blue is associated with stability and peace.
Meanwhile, the NHCP also said that the publication material (pubmat) that was posted featured the national flag with designs.
“Ang pubmat na ito ay lumalabag sa Batas Republika Blg. 8491 o ang ‘Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines’ na nagbabawal sa paggamit ng Pambansang Watawat ng Pilipinas sa mga poster at print materials,” it said on Facebook.
The agency cited provisions in the law that prohibit adding “any word, figure, mark, picture, design, drawings, advertisement, or imprint of any nature” on the national flag.
Nevertheless, the NHCP congratulated Dia for bringing home the pageant crown that was last won by the Philippines in 2017 by Winwyn Marquez.
“Gayunpaman, binabati namin si Bb. Dia Maté na kinoronahang Reina Hispanoamericana 2025, tunay siyang #LatinaSlayer,” the NHCP said.
“Laging tandaan, ang panata ng bawat Pilipino ay dapat #TapatSaWatawat,” it added.
The TLS, on the other hand, said that it reposted the pubmat uploaded on the Instagram account of the Reina Hispanoamericana.
“EDITOR’S NOTE: The previously attached visual, which was a poster borrowed from the Reina Hispanoamericana Instagram page, has been replaced following its violation of Republic Act 8491 or the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines,” it said.
The pubmat is also no longer available on the beauty pageant’s social media accounts.
Dia is the second Filipina to have won the Reina Hispanoamericana (or Hispanic American Queen) crown.
She is the granddaughter of Justice Secretary Crispin “Boying” Remulla and the girlfriend of OPM singer-songwriter Juan Karlos Labajo.
Meanwhile, the Bolivia-based pageant is an annual pageant that celebrates Hispanic heritage, language and culture.
Countries with Hispanic influence participate in the beauty contest.
