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During his June 27-29 visit to Seychelles, the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi received an award that has never been seen before – a precious, valuable award made for him, called “Guardian of the Blue Horizon”.
The award did not exist before Modi went to Seychelles. And the accompanying text was full of embarrassing errors: the country that gave the award, and presented it to Modi, is known as the “Repubblic of Seychelles”.
The mistakes were the result of a “quick job” that led to “a scandal”, said Nitasha Kaul, a professor of politics and international relations at the University of Westminster in the United Kingdom.
However, Modi’s Blue Horizon award now ranks alongside similar trophies and medals in his foreign travel category. When he goes on foreign visits, Modi often has awards, many of which – including the Indonesian one on Tuesday – made for him.
“These awards are not about India’s negotiations; they are about Modi’s image,” Kaul told Al Jazeera.
Here’s more on the recent Seychelles award, some of Modi’s missteps over the years, and what he has to say about how several countries are handling their relationship with India under its current leadership.
What do we know about Modi’s Seychelles prize?
The award, described as the highest honor in Seychelles, was presented by President Patrick Herminie to Modi in Victoria at a ceremony at State House.
Modi received the award in recognition of his “outstanding leadership and commitment to sustainable development, environmental protection, and climate resilience”. He received a physical badge and a certificate.
When pictures of Modi’s special certificate emerged, viewers pointed out several errors, including “repubblic” instead of republic and “Seycheeles” instead of Seychelles.
Mistakes committed by opposition politicians.
“The world has recognized Modi. Give him any award, and he will come running,” Congress Party’s Supriya Shrinate wrote in an X post on June 28.
“He was in such a hurry that he got the name of the Republic of Seychelles wrong,” added Shrinate.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Seychelles issued a statement on Thursday, saying that the photo that was published of the certificate was “a draft” and not a final certificate.
“The distinction of the Guardian of the Blue Horizon is true,” the ministry added.
The Seychelles cabinet accepted the award a few days before Modi’s arrival.
Which other countries have given Modi awards?
Modi has received more than 30 honors during his foreign visits in the last 12 years.
In Indonesia on Tuesday, he was awarded the Bintang Adipurna, the world’s highest award.
In June, Modi received the Slovak Republic’s highest honor, the “Order of the White Double Cross, 1st Class”. Regardless of how others may read his title, the honor is genuine, reserved for foreign nationals, and has already been awarded to world leaders, including Bronislaw Komorowski, former president of the Republic of Poland and Heinz Fischer, former president of the Republic of Austria.
This medal is the highest decoration awarded by the Slovak Republic, which is reserved almost exclusively for foreign citizens who have contributed significantly to the development of relations between their countries and Slovakia.
But while Modi is not the first leader to receive the Double Cross award in Slovakia, he is the first and only recipient of the Knesset Medal, which was awarded to him during his visit to Israel in February. The award was made shortly after the Indian Prime Minister’s visit, which came on the eve of the US-Israeli war on Iran.
What other awards did Modi receive?
In 2018, Modi won the United Nations Champions of the Earth Award along with French President Emmanuel Macron, the UN’s highest environmental honor, which is given annually to recognize global leadership in environmental protection and sustainable development.
In 2019, he won the Global Goalkeeper Award presented by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in New York for his leadership in the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission), which aims to improve cleanliness in India.
Also in 2019, Modi won the first Philip Kotler Global Marketing Award, which is to be given to a world leader every year. No other world leader has received the Philip Kotler Presidential Award since then.
Are these awards helping India?
While receiving every honor, Modi made it clear that he was honoring India, not just himself. And countries feeling obliged to create new awards to honor the Indian leader no doubt reflects their desire to please New Delhi, to reflect the global growth that the world’s largest democracy is enjoying.
However, some experts question its real value.
“No doubt New Delhi will say that these awards show the respect that India now enjoys in the world, but it is difficult to see their political or economic value for the rest of the country,” Ian Hall, a professor of international relations at Griffith University in Australia, told Al Jazeera.
“Instead it reinforces the perception that the PM is not focused on how to advance India’s interests.”
Some say the awards do more to boost Modi’s image than India’s diplomatic standing.
“These awards work as part of Modi’s political power,” Kaul told Al Jazeera. “He and his supporters use them to create a myth about a world-renowned leader, a myth that is separated from his real record in the international debate.”
Kaul added: “The Seychelles region, with its fast-tracked work and wrongly written certificate, is an example: this has nothing to do with India’s negotiations, it is about Modi’s character.
