Daily News Editorial

A boost for Lanka-Malaysia ties

17 December 2016

Sri Lanka and Malaysia have always been very close friends – the two countries are celebrating 60 years of diplomatic ties this year. Malaysia is less than four hours from Sri Lanka by air and can be considered as a neighbour in the Asian region. Malaysia firmly stood by Sri Lanka during its long battle with terrorism despite certain domestic political considerations.

In this context, the State visit of President Maithripala Sirisena to Malaysia heralds in a new era of friendship and cooperation between the two countries. This is the first visit to Malaysia by a Sri Lankan Head of State since 1997, when President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga paid a State visit. In July this year, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi visited Sri Lanka.

President Sirisena’s talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Haji Abdul Razak are expected to focus on a wide array of bilateral issues. Five Memoranda of Understanding would be concluded between the two countries covering the areas of tourism, youth development, culture, arts and heritage, foreign workers as well as scientific and technical cooperation.

The visit is expected to deepen the economic, cultural, linguistic, social and tourism links between the two countries. Malaysia is home to a vibrant Sri Lankan-origin community that exceeds 300,000 people. The British sent many Ceylonese to assist the administration process in Malaysia. Following the Pangkor Treaty of 1874, the British started the construction of roads, railways, schools, hospitals and Government offices in the Malay Peninsula to develop the country and to increase its revenue.

With the establishment of the Federated Malay States, a large number of clerks, surveyors, hospital assistants, teachers and technical assistants from Ceylon began to arrive. They maintained their cultural and linguistic practices in Malaysia. The Sri Kandasamy Kovil in Kuala Lumpur, inspired by the famous Nallur Kandasamy Kovil in Jaffna, is a well-known landmark that attracts Hindus from all over the world. Later, they organised themselves politically under the banner of the Malaysian Ceylonese Congress. Several well known figures in Malaysia were of Sri Lankan origin, including R. Navaratnam, D.R. Seenivasagam and E. Thuraisingham. Well known Sri Lankan politician S.J.V. Chelvanayakam was born in Malaysia.

Likewise, Sri Lanka too has a relatively small (around 40,000) but vibrant Malay community who still speak a dialect of Bahasa Malaysia. Their ancestors came from the Malay Peninsula when both Malaya and Sri Lanka were part of the British Empire. The eminent educationist and politician T.B. Jayah was the most famous Sri Lankan Malay, but many other Malays have distinguished themselves in a variety of other fields including Armed Forces, politics, culture and sports. These mutual populations will always be a pivotal part of the Sri Lanka-Malaysia relationship.

Sri Lanka and Malaysia will be seeking to improve their trade and economic relationship as well. Bilateral trade currently stands at around US$ 1 billion, but there is scope for expansion. This topic will be highlighted by President Sirisena at the Sri Lanka business forum in Kuala Lumpur. The Sri Lankan delegation will showcase the investment opportunities available in Sri Lanka to Malaysian investors.

It is also vital to improve people-to-people contact between the two countries. Travel between the two countries has received a boost following the entry of new airlines such as Air Asia and Malindo Air to Colombo, which complement existing services by SriLankan and Malaysian. Although Sri Lanka already grants the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) facility to Malaysians, the Malaysian side is still working on the e-Visa facility for Sri Lankans (it is already available to Indian nationals), but we hope the facility will be granted soon, following the Sri Lankan President’s visit. It will lead to a major boost in Sri Lankan visitor numbers to Malaysia, on a scale similar to trips to neighbouring Singapore which provides visa-free entry to Sri Lankans.

Malaysia has developed rapidly through the decades, achieving a per capita GDP exceeding US$ 10,000. Malaysia has a thriving auto and electronics manufacturing industry – one can see a large number of Malaysian cars on our roads and that nice TV set you saw in the store on your way to work has most probably been made in Malaysia.

There are many lessons that we can draw from Malaysia on matters ranging from development to ethnic harmony, being home to several communities and religious groups. The geography too is diverse and challenging, with the country divided into Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo, sharing borders with Indonesia and Brunei. This has posed infrastructural and logistical problems. Yet, the country has successfully triumphed over these challenges. Malaysia is indeed a good example for other developing countries to emulate. Both Sri Lanka and Malaysia are partners on the journey of development and the current Presidential visit will reinforce these bonds.