Idris Jusoh leads delegation to Egypt

Second Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh left for strife-torn Egypt last night to hold discussions with his counterpart over problems faced by Malaysian students there.

The delegation included Education Ministry's second secretary-general Datuk Dr Zaini Ujang, Prime Minister's special officer Datuk Shahlan Ismail, former Malaysian ambassador to Egypt Datuk Dr Mohd Fakhrudin Abdul Mukti, Al-Azhar University's Malaysian Campus representative Yahya Abd Jalil and Education Ministry's Higher Education Sector senior officer Ibrahim Ali.

Dr Zaini said efforts were being made to enable Idris to hold meetings with his counterpart and university rectors to ensure that Malaysian students were not affected by the conflict.

"Firstly, we will request the nine universities where our students are pursuing their studies to postpone their exams.

"Secondly, we will ask for repeat exams for 1,300 students (those who failed last semester) so that they can be held in Malaysia. And thirdly, we will discuss the possibilities or find an alternative in the event that the internal conflict in the country continues," he said.

He said the Malaysian delegation would also seek clarification on claims that some Malaysian students had been detained by Egyptian authorities for their involvement in the conflict.