The National Day of Timor Leste was observed on the first day of September. This day celebrating one of the youngest countries in the world enjoyed participation by the President of the Council of Ministries, Agio Pereira; the Minister of Tourism, Art and Culture, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay; the Minister of Finance, Santina Cardoso; and the Vice President of Parliament, Aderito Hugo da Costa.
The sound of drums accompanied dancers who, wearing traditional clothing and characteristic head coverings with white feathers, hypnotized the audience with a sweet and singing rhythm before taking over the stage at the Expo Center.
Welcoming the delegation from Timor Leste were the Commissioner General of Expo Milano 2015, Bruno Pasquino; the prefect of Milan, Francesco Paolo Tronca, and Filippo Bubbico, deputy minister of the Interior, who opened with a discussion that confirmed Timor Leste’s added value for Expo Milano 2015, or “the presence of countries that can show themselves to the world with a different perspective, one that imparts trust in them and the international community.”
As is the practice at Expo Milano 2015, a flag-raising ceremony and singing of the nation anthems started off the day dedicated to this Southeast Asian country on the day of its sixteenth anniversary of its independence obtained through a referendum on August 30, 1999.
“Since 2006, through the resilience and determination of its people, Timor Leste has taken giant steps: displaced people have found homes and the police have taken over control of security. The media and civil society are gaining strength and poverty has decreased, thanks to public investments.”
President Pereira emphasized how modeling the healthy lifestyle promoted at Expo Milano 2015 is part of Timor’s character. “Our nation has among its goals a way of living that is healthy and full of mutual respect.” Because of this, the country developed organic and sustainable coffee farming, certified for the end product as well as for the production practices. “We are proud of being part of the Coffee Cluster,” added Pereira.
