PDIP Secretary-General and Timor-Leste President Discuss Megawati's Planned Visit

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The President of Timor-Leste, Jose Ramos Horta, received a visit from the Secretary-General of PDIP, Hasto Kristiyanto, at the Nicolau Lobato Presidential Palace, Dili, on Wednesday (3/6), to coordinate plans for a visit by the 5th President of the Republic of Indonesia and current PDIP Chairwoman, Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Megawati is scheduled to receive the ‘Grand Collar Order of Timor-Leste’, the highest honour from the Government of Timor-Leste, in July 2026.

“We had a warm conversation with President Ramos Horta. He conveyed warm greetings to Mrs. Megawati and looks forward to her arrival in Dili. The President instructed his team, who also participated in the meeting, to assist in ensuring that Mrs. Megawati’s visit runs smoothly and successfully,” said Hasto in a statement in Jakarta, Thursday.

During the meeting, Hasto also discussed steps to strengthen relations between the two neighbouring countries, as well as emphasising the importance of inter-party cooperation, especially regarding the institutionalisation of parties and how to maintain democracy.

Hasto said that President Ramos Horta understands that PDIP is often associated with the term Marhaen. He also mentioned something similar, which in Timor-Leste is called Maubere.

Marhaen is the name of a small farmer in Bandung who Soekarno met in the 1920s. This meeting inspired Soekarno to create the term Marhaenism as a symbol of the struggle for the poor, the oppressed, and the common people.

“President Ramos Horta said that there is a similarity between Marhaen and Maubere. Maubere is a term in the Tetum language that refers to the common people, farmers, or the indigenous people of Timor-Leste,” he said.

The President said that Timor-Leste has a Human Capital Development Fund, a government mechanism for training and scholarships to build the skills and professional capacity of the nation, which was established in 2011.

After the meeting, Hasto presented a souvenir in the form of batik cloth to President Ramos Horta.

During the meeting, Hasto was accompanied by the Head of the PDIP Organisational Division, Andreas H. Pareira, the Head of the PDIP Research and Policy Analysis Agency, Andi Widjajanto, and the Director of Foreign Affairs of PDIP, Hanjaya Setiawan.