State Department Seal Speech by Ambassador Marie T. Huhtala

376 Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tel: 603-2168-5000 Fax: 603-2142-2207.
Bahasa Malaysia text January 14, 2003
     U.S.Embassy Malaysia

Ambassador Huttala's photo

U.S. Ambassador Marie T. Huhtala
REMARKS AT ANNUAL DINNER OF THE HUMPHREY FELLOWS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OF MALAYSIA January 14, 2003 - Renaissance Hotel, KL


Friends and honored guests…..

Let me begin by congratulating the Humphrey Fellows Alumni Association for holding this event tonight and for helping us honor the 40th anniversary of educational exchange between Malaysia and the United States of America.

In just 12 days, on January 28, 2003, the Malaysian-American Commission on Educational Exchange - which we all know as MACEE - will mark its 40th anniversary. So I also would like to wish a happy birthday to Don McCloud, Kala Kovan and everyone else at MACEE!

MACEE was created on January 28, 1963, when a Memorandum of Agreement on bilateral education exchange was signed by the representative of the government of Malaysia, Education Minister Tuan Haji Abdul Hamid Khan, and by the representative of the United States government, US Ambassador to Malaysia Charles Baldwin.

After forty years and hundreds of scholarships, fellowships and exchanges, it is abundantly clear that MACEE and the programs it administers have brought lasting benefits to both of our countries.

All the Humphrey Fellows Alumni here tonight know well what a key role MACEE played in making their educational experiences in the US so successful, and in fostering lasting ties among alumni after their programs were completed.

But for the benefit of those of you here tonight who don't have direct personal experience of MACEE and the Humphrey Fellowship program it administers, I'd like to take a brief look back before we eat dinner and before the Lord Mayor of Kuala Lumpur shares with us his vision of this incredible city's bright future.

Back in 1963, Malaysia was one of the world's newest democracies as educational exchange between our two countries began. The US Peace Corps and American Field Scholarships (AFS) brought thousands of Americans and Malaysians together in those early years; indeed, some of the friendships created then endure to this day.

In the early 1960s, more Malaysians began to study at US universities. The Kennedy Administration quickly recognized Malaysia's importance and potential by launching the bi-national educational exchange commission known as MACEE in 1963.

The Fulbright Scholarship program, which MACEE also administers, had begun in Asia at the end of World War II, with programs in Burma and China. By the early 1960s, however, Fulbright Commissions like MACEE could only be found in a handful of countries around the world. Malaysia was one of the first developing nations to host a Commission, and it still is one of only four ASEAN countries with which we have active bi-national educational exchange agreements.

MACEE was still a teenager - just 15 years old - when the Hubert H. Humphrey North-South Fellowship program was created in 1978. The US Congress created this program in honor of the late Senator and Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey, who worked tirelessly to aid the developing world and expand educational programs throughout his life.

More than 2,500 Humphrey Fellows -- from almost 150 countries -- have participated in the program since 1978. The program is not aimed at students, and does not offer a degree. Rather, it looks for mid-career leaders in a wide range of fields, people who are just beginning their rise into senior management positions and who can benefit from an opportunity to study their fields of interest further with professional colleagues from around the world in America.

Malaysia's first Humphrey Fellow, Encik Shah bin Abu Mansor of the Public Services Department, began his fellowship at Brandeis University in 1979. He was one of the first 50 people in the world to travel to the US as a Humphrey Fellow.

In 1980, Malaysia sent two Humphrey Fellows to the US. One was Dr. Megat Mahyuddin bin Hassan, who is now the Head Secretary of the Ministry of Public Works and the other is Dato Mustapha Mohamed, who spoke just before me.

I am sure that everyone here is aware of Dato Mustapha's achievements in the fields of economic policy and planning, management and politics. But not so many of you may be aware that Dato Mustapha was also the leader who helped make this alumni association possible.

Dato Mustapha returned with his US Humphrey Fellowship, I am told, with so much determination and enthusiasm that he joined with several other alumni who are also here tonight -to create the Humphrey Fellows Alumni Association of Malaysia, one of the first in the world. For that initiative on your part, sir, we are all very grateful.

I also want to acknowledge two other people whose work has been invaluable to this association and its success - Encik Juhaidi Yean Abdullah, who has done a lot of work to make this dinner possible tonight, and Mr. Chiam Soon Hock, who has served loyally and energetically as Secretary of the Association ever since it was founded.

Juhaidi and Chiam, I know you do most of your work behind the scenes, but I'd like to ask you to stand up and take a bow on center stage tonight: you have truly been the strongest pillars supporting this association for many, many years.

Through the hard work of people like Dato Mustapha, Juhaidi, Chiam and many other alumni, the Humphrey Fellows Alumni Association of Malaysia is recognized by the US State Department as one of the most successful Humphrey Fellows alumni groups in the entire world.

I would like to ask all of the Humphrey Fellowship alumni here tonight to stand up, so others might know who you are and acknowledge your great achievements.

MACEE is no longer a teenager today, it's about to turn 40. That's a tough birthday for many of us to handle, but MACEE has matured well and has many, many children to be proud of today.

The theme that the MACEE Board recently chose to honor the 40th anniversary of educational ties between America and Malaysia is "Building Bridges to a Brighter Future." That is a good way to describe the core value of educational exchange.

Each one of you is a builder of bridges, establishing strong, living ties between Malaysians and Americans in diverse fields. You've also built lasting bridges of professional collaboration and friendship with other Humphrey Fellows from around the world, and with many ordinary Americans you met during your time in the USA.

I trust most of those bridges are still standing. I know a lot of them are, and the Humphrey Fellows Alumni Association of Malaysia is here to help reinforce them and forge new ties between our two countries every year.

I believe that is the true value of educational exchange. You learn a lot more about the world when you see other countries up close. And, at the same time, you can learn a lot more about your own country and your own identity when you look at it from a distance. Living in another country makes each of us more open-minded and more appreciative of our own culture.

Malaysia is one of the world's most impressive developing nations because of the knowledge and skills that its citizens have brought back to this country from their rich overseas experiences. At the same time, America is a prosperous country and a center for world innovation because of the constant flow of new ideas and talent brought by visiting scholars, students and immigrants.

Over the past 23 years, 36 Malaysians have earned a prestigious Humphrey Fellowship award. Their strong presence and active participation in this program has brought benefit to Malaysia and to the United States of America.

Two years ago, one of your alumni received a special honor. Khairuddin Mohamed Tahir, the Chief Executive Officer of the International Tropical Fruits Network and an active member of this association, received a $10,000 Humphrey Alumni Impact Award from the International Institute for Education, in recognition of his ongoing work in the sustainable development of Malaysia's natural resources.

Your association has also done a great job in supporting other alumni groups across Asia and the Pacific. I know you have hosted your colleagues from other countries at regional conferences in Malaysia before, and I hope there will be a chance for you to do so again soon.

I am extremely pleased that so many of Malaysia's Humphrey Fellows alumni are able to join us this evening. Whatever your field of interest, I hope you will agree that the Humphrey Fellowship changed your life and assisted you in realizing your professional goals and personal dreams.

Finally, I am pleased to introduce the three finalists for a Humphrey Fellowship in 2003, the 40th Anniversary year for MACEE. The final selection committee in the US has not yet met, so we have no way of knowing how many Malaysians will be chosen, but these three have all achieved much already in being selected as a Humphrey finalist.

I'd like to close with a famous remark by Senator Humphrey. He said, "The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously." What a great principle of democracy this is - everyone gets a chance to say his or her piece, but they have to earn the right to have their words taken seriously.

The Humphrey Fellows alumni in this room, through their outstanding achievements before, during and after their fellowships, have more than earned the right to be taken seriously. You have established yourselves as leaders of Malaysian civil society, and your contributions are immensely valuable.

We salute you, we thank you for all your efforts, and we look forward to a continued close association between this Embassy and the Humphrey Fellows Alumni Association of Malaysia!

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