“Duniya hum logon ko apnati hai…”: President Murmu in Timor-Leste

President Droupadi Murmu, during her interaction with Timor-Leste counterpart Jose Ramos-Horta, emphasised that India considers the whole world as one family and that Indians are accepted by the whole world because of their hard work and trustworthiness.

She said that the Indian diaspora participates in every sector and is accepted everywhere because of their learnings from their ancestors.

“We believe the whole world is a family. We believe in ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’… The people of India are very affectionate and they gel in easily everywhere. They want to visit other places. The people of other countries also love them because they are hard-working, affectionate, humble and trustworthy… ‘Hum duniya ko apnana nahi chahte, duniya hum logo ko apnati hai’ (the world accepts us).”

“Indian diaspora are participating in every sector, whether it is business, education or politics…They are accepted because our ancestors have taught them how to meet people, how to live, and how to speak to people…We believe that the world is a family,” she added.

Emphasising the importance of women’s progress for the overall progress of society and the world, President Murmu highlighted women’s progress today, adding how self-help groups are working to make women financially independent.

“There are around 50 per cent women in the world. For the progress of the family, society nation or the world, progress of the women is necessary. Everyone’s situation is indeed different. Society is modern now. There was a time when women used to stay inside their homes, but now everyone has understood and they want to move forward and take their family, society and country ahead,” Murmu said.

“In India, we have created self-help groups to make women financially independent… I go to many places and I see that businesspeople, politicians and officials are women. Women are considered as ‘Matru Shakti’ in India. They have a lot of power and we have to take that power out and show it to the world,” she added.

When asked about how India remains united, despite being so diverse, the President said the country believes in ‘Unity in Diversity’ and people respect our “strong Constitution” as well as the elected representatives.

“India is a big nation where 1.4 billion people live. Their language, culture, dress, customs everything is different. But we are one because we believe in unity in diversity. This is not new, we have been living together despite different sections and religions since very old times. Our Constitution is very strong…People respect those who are elected or are given positions of MP, MLA, Governor or President…This has been our culture since the beginning and I think that is the reason that even though being different, all of us believe in unity,” she further said.

Earlier in the day, President Droupadi Murmu was conferred with the Grand-Collar of the Order of Timor-Leste, the country’s highest civilian award, on Saturday.

Sharing a post on X, along with pictures, the official account of Rashtrapati Bhavan, run by President’s Secretariat wrote, “President Jose Ramos-Horta of Timor-Leste conferred the Grand-Collar of the Order of Timor-Leste, the country’s highest civilian award, upon President Droupadi Murmu.”

“The award is in recognition of her achievements in public service and dedication to education, social welfare and the empowerment of women,” the post read.

After receiving the award, President Murmu said that the “honour is a reflection of the ties of friendship between India and Timor-Leste.”

This was the second time a country conferred her with the highest civilian honour after being conferred with ‘Companion of the Order of Fiji” by Fiji.

President Murmu arrived in Timor-Leste earlier today, after concluding her visits to Fiji and New Zealand.