Saifuddin writes official letter to Blinken in Bahasa Melayu

KUALA LUMPUR: In line with efforts to elevate Bahasa Melayu (the Malay language) to the international level, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah has sent an official letter in the national language to the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.

This was shared by him in a post on his Facebook account today.

"Today I have written an official letter in Bahasa Melayu to the United States Secretary of State.

"It is the first official letter in Bahasa Melayu from me to a counterpart, in line with the Prime Minister's statement in the Dewan Negara yesterday (Wednesday)," said Saifuddin.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob told the Dewan Negara that he would confer with ASEAN leaders to propose the use of the Bahasa Melayu as ASEAN's second language.

Efforts to use Bahasa Melayu will be continued in international meetings and conferences, whether bilateral or multilateral, within or outside the country as and when necessary.

In showing how serious the government was..., Ismail Sabri started using Bahasa Melayu during his official visits to Indonesia, Brunei, Cambodia, Thailand and most recently during his visit to Vietnam.

He will also use Bahasa Melayu officially when speaking at the United Nations (UN) Conference and ASEAN Summit and which will take place in September and November respectively.

In a separate post in his Facebook on Thursday, the Foreign Minister said he had participated in the Asia Dialogue on Forced Migration(ADFM), highlighting the realities of the region in regard to forced migration and population displacement.

"It is the people who are most vulnerable that are hit the hardest, for example Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, which is why Malaysia participates actively with all the relevant stakeholders to undertake a coherent and comprehensive regional cooperation to tackle the situation effectively," he said.

The ADFM brings together government and non-government decision makers from nine affected countries and representatives from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

This ADFM meeting coincided with the 20th anniversary of the Bali Process, a forum for policy dialogue, information sharing and practical cooperation to help the region address these challenges.

"We call for member states to be more proactive and creative for the process to work better," he added.

-- BERNAMA