Dubai: Indians in the UAE celebrated India’s Republic Day on Monday with a focus on women’s rights.
India’s embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulate in Dubai hoisted the Indian national flag with hundreds of people present. An address by Indian president Pranab Mukherjee was read out by diplomats at the missions and later at Dubai’s Indian High School (IHS).
The speech called for respect and safety for women, who have suffered violent crime in a spate of high-profile cases that made headlines worldwide recently.
IHS schoolgirls also staged a show highlighting common problems faced by women in India, such as the pressure to furnish in-laws with dowry or give birth to boys. The show, a short drama, ended with the students raising placards that called for national unity in the fight for greater women’s security.
In his address on the eve of Republic Day, Mukherjee had said “it pains me to see that Mother India is not respected by her own children when it comes to the safety of women. Atrocities of rape, murders, harassment on the roads, kidnapping and dowry deaths have made women fearful even in their own homes…”
He added: “Where have we failed, as parents, teachers and leaders, that our children have forgotten all tenets of decent behaviour and respect for women? … Every Indian must take a pledge to protect the honour of women from violence of any kind. Only a nation that respects and empowers its women can become a global power.”
On Monday at IHS, thousands of parents gathered to watch their children perform a variety of cultural shows. There was also a march past and an inspection of the student houses by Anurag Bhushan, Consul-General of India.
Earlier on Sunday evening, the Indian Business and Professional Council in Dubai hosted a get-together to mark the occasion. The chief guest was Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development. The guests of honour were T. P. Seetharam, Ambassador of India to the UAE, and Bhushan.
