Australian-Malaysian ties 'improved' ?
An excerpt from The Age :
Coming to terms over our differences - James Wise
A DIPLOMAT, it is said, thinks twice before saying nothing. Australians, however, are known for their openness. So when the NSTP asked me to assess how Australia’s relations with Malaysia have developed in the four years I have been High Commissioner, I faced a dilemma — but only briefly.
Yes, I’m pleased with the state of bilateral relations, but our education, security, trade and people-to-people ties were already substantial when I arrived. And in good conscience, I cannot take any credit for the happier political atmosphere in which we now conduct our bilateral relations.
Let’s be candid. The retirement of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad saw a shift in the tone of political relations and that has helped bilateral ties more broadly. I say that not out of any disrespect to Dr Mahathir.
I’m sure he would agree that the shift has occurred. He may not agree that this shift is a good thing, but in my view Dr Mahathir never understood Australia, and perhaps some Australians never understood him. That said, he left us in no doubt about what his views of Australia were.
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is equally frank, but he is not preoccupied with worn-out and ultimately futile debates about whether Australia is an Asian country.
It seems to me that he quietly accepts that Australia is not an Asian country and can never be an Asian country. Australians are very comfortable with that. Australia is Australia, and Australians are Australians, not Asians or Europeans or anyone else.
In addition, Abdullah realises that Australia plays a substantial role in the region. Most Australians are very comfortable with that view. They want Australia to be part of the region, and they want Australia to continue to contribute to and benefit from the region.
Australia and Malaysia agree on many important issues, but it is also true that Australia and Malaysia see the world differently. Malaysia is proud of its international reputation for being non-aligned. Australia is not non-aligned.
Our alliance with the United States has been at the centre of our security policy for decades. At times, Malaysia chooses to criticise the West publicly in very strong terms. Either directly or indirectly, Australia is a target of that criticism. Whether that criticism is fair or not probably depends on the issue of the day, but it is always a reminder that Malaysia sees the world differently from Australia.
Malaysia’s policies and rhetoric flow from a worldview that is influenced by Malaysia’s colonial experience, by Malaysia being a Muslim- majority country, by Malaysia’s attachment to multilateralism, and by Malaysia’s championship of developing-country issues.
Australia’s colonial experience was different from Malaysia’s. Australia is a secular state. Australia supports the United Nations, too, but looks fairly quickly for solutions elsewhere when the UN system fails.
Australia is the 15th largest economy in the world. Although we give substantial development assistance (over RM7 billion last year), particularly in our region, including to Asean, Australia is not itself a developing country.
Notwithstanding those inherent differences, in recent years two things have changed. First, Australia and Malaysia now tend to accept those differences as natural. There is a tacit agreement not to waste too much time and goodwill focusing on what might divide us. Instead, we conduct ourselves like mature nations who want to advance the individual and joint interests of our two countries.
The second major change has been in the perception of Malaysia in Australia. Rightly or wrongly, in the past, many Australian business people concluded that poor political relations might get in the way of Australian business in Malaysia, so they didn’t invest here. Better political relations have made Malaysia more attractive to Australian investors.
Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (Mida) statistics on approved investments in the manufacturing sector show that for the first three quarters of 2006, Australia was Malaysia’s second largest investor. For the third quarter itself, Australia was the largest source of investment.
The new projects include a proposed iron ore pellet plant in Terengganu, and developments in the biofuels sector. Other manufacturing investments are in the pipeline, for example in rare earth processing.
Mida’s statistics don’t include even bigger Australian investments in the services sector, like banking, real estate and insurance. It’s a very positive picture and the free trade agreement being negotiated should encourage even more Australian investors to come here.
We have had four rounds of FTA negotiations and many inter-sessional exchanges. Both sides are approaching the negotiations with goodwill and determination.
It would have been good to see the negotiations conclude before my posting ended. But it is even more important to secure an FTA that genuinely improves market access for Australian and Malaysian businesses, especially in the services sector which offers both countries the greatest scope for economic growth. The negotiators are working hard, but they have a way to go yet on some tough issues.
I’ll watch their progress with great interest, but from Canberra rather than Kuala Lumpur.
* The writer is the outgoing Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia.
Malaysia Australia James wise AAB Tun Dr M
Australia's outgoing ambassador says his country's relations with Malaysia have improved since Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad quit because his successor is not preoccupied with bickering over whether Australia is Asian.
Mahathir ridiculed Australian Prime Minister John Howard for his close ties to the United States, and said Australia cannot be part of Asia because of its Anglo-Saxon population and heritage.
"Dr Mahathir never understood Australia, and perhaps Australians never understood him,"
Relations between the two countries have progressed, he said, citing Australia's position as the second largest investor in Malaysia in the first three quarters of 2006.
"In the past, many Australian business people concluded that poor political relations might get in the way of Australian business in Malaysia, so they didn't invest here."
Wise said Mahathir's successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, is an improvement because he isn't "preoccupied with worn out and ultimately futile debates about whether Australia is an Asian country".
Coming to terms over our differences - James Wise
A DIPLOMAT, it is said, thinks twice before saying nothing. Australians, however, are known for their openness. So when the NSTP asked me to assess how Australia’s relations with Malaysia have developed in the four years I have been High Commissioner, I faced a dilemma — but only briefly.
Yes, I’m pleased with the state of bilateral relations, but our education, security, trade and people-to-people ties were already substantial when I arrived. And in good conscience, I cannot take any credit for the happier political atmosphere in which we now conduct our bilateral relations.
Let’s be candid. The retirement of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad saw a shift in the tone of political relations and that has helped bilateral ties more broadly. I say that not out of any disrespect to Dr Mahathir.
I’m sure he would agree that the shift has occurred. He may not agree that this shift is a good thing, but in my view Dr Mahathir never understood Australia, and perhaps some Australians never understood him. That said, he left us in no doubt about what his views of Australia were.
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is equally frank, but he is not preoccupied with worn-out and ultimately futile debates about whether Australia is an Asian country.
It seems to me that he quietly accepts that Australia is not an Asian country and can never be an Asian country. Australians are very comfortable with that. Australia is Australia, and Australians are Australians, not Asians or Europeans or anyone else.
In addition, Abdullah realises that Australia plays a substantial role in the region. Most Australians are very comfortable with that view. They want Australia to be part of the region, and they want Australia to continue to contribute to and benefit from the region.
Australia and Malaysia agree on many important issues, but it is also true that Australia and Malaysia see the world differently. Malaysia is proud of its international reputation for being non-aligned. Australia is not non-aligned.
Our alliance with the United States has been at the centre of our security policy for decades. At times, Malaysia chooses to criticise the West publicly in very strong terms. Either directly or indirectly, Australia is a target of that criticism. Whether that criticism is fair or not probably depends on the issue of the day, but it is always a reminder that Malaysia sees the world differently from Australia.
Malaysia’s policies and rhetoric flow from a worldview that is influenced by Malaysia’s colonial experience, by Malaysia being a Muslim- majority country, by Malaysia’s attachment to multilateralism, and by Malaysia’s championship of developing-country issues.
Australia’s colonial experience was different from Malaysia’s. Australia is a secular state. Australia supports the United Nations, too, but looks fairly quickly for solutions elsewhere when the UN system fails.
Australia is the 15th largest economy in the world. Although we give substantial development assistance (over RM7 billion last year), particularly in our region, including to Asean, Australia is not itself a developing country.
Notwithstanding those inherent differences, in recent years two things have changed. First, Australia and Malaysia now tend to accept those differences as natural. There is a tacit agreement not to waste too much time and goodwill focusing on what might divide us. Instead, we conduct ourselves like mature nations who want to advance the individual and joint interests of our two countries.
The second major change has been in the perception of Malaysia in Australia. Rightly or wrongly, in the past, many Australian business people concluded that poor political relations might get in the way of Australian business in Malaysia, so they didn’t invest here. Better political relations have made Malaysia more attractive to Australian investors.
Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (Mida) statistics on approved investments in the manufacturing sector show that for the first three quarters of 2006, Australia was Malaysia’s second largest investor. For the third quarter itself, Australia was the largest source of investment.
The new projects include a proposed iron ore pellet plant in Terengganu, and developments in the biofuels sector. Other manufacturing investments are in the pipeline, for example in rare earth processing.
Mida’s statistics don’t include even bigger Australian investments in the services sector, like banking, real estate and insurance. It’s a very positive picture and the free trade agreement being negotiated should encourage even more Australian investors to come here.
We have had four rounds of FTA negotiations and many inter-sessional exchanges. Both sides are approaching the negotiations with goodwill and determination.
It would have been good to see the negotiations conclude before my posting ended. But it is even more important to secure an FTA that genuinely improves market access for Australian and Malaysian businesses, especially in the services sector which offers both countries the greatest scope for economic growth. The negotiators are working hard, but they have a way to go yet on some tough issues.
I’ll watch their progress with great interest, but from Canberra rather than Kuala Lumpur.
* The writer is the outgoing Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia.
Malaysia Australia James wise AAB Tun Dr M
Labels: opinion Malaysia
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