Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Eloquent UNGA Speech
M. Bakri Musa
September 25, 2023
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s eloquent speech on September 22, 2023 at the 78th session of the Annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) was in a class of its own. In tone, style as well as content he struck all the right chords, addressing regional, world, and transnational issues as global warming as well as the disenfranchisement and marginalization of the poor.
He began in formal Malay except for the traditional Islamic greetings before switching to English for his speech proper. His attire of Baju Melayu with samping and songkok in understated colors was simple yet elegant. The UNGA is not the place to display your colorful costume, exotic culture, or quaint language but to share with others your visions and aspirations for a better world. This, Anwar did brilliantly. His predecessors too have all addressed the UNGA but none matched Anwar’s superb performance.
His immediate predecessor Ismail Sabri was parochial, more interested in playing local politics by delivering his speech in Malay. He may have won plaudits from language nationalists back home but alas few delegates kept their earphones on. Nobody wants to hear a translator’s voice. His predecessor Muhyiddin Yassin on the other hand would have been better off speaking in Malay and relying on the official translator.
Najib Razak’s crisp English, from his British boarding school upbringing, made his presentations glossy but alas that could not compensate for the lack of substance. As for Abdullah Badawi, his speeches at UNGA and elsewhere were as forgettable as was his tenure.
Mahathir Mohamad had addressed the UNGA more times than any world leader except perhaps Zimbabwe’s Mugabe. Both also share some other unsavory features. Mahathir’s dwindling fans as well as Anwar’s domestic detractors have made much on the purported number of empty seats in the hall when Anwar was speaking as compared to when Mahathir last appeared in 2019. They forget that those UN delegates then stayed less to hear what the old man had to say, more a voyeuristic curiosity on how a nonagenarian would perform without bathroom breaks! As for content, it was Mahathir’s usual and predictable carping against the West and his playing to the Third World gallery.
Anwar’s first applause came when he in clear unequivocal language condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. His critics back home saw that as his sucking up to America. Yes, Anwar’s statement pleased the West, America in particular. However if his detractors had listened further, Anwar also condemned Israel’s annexation of Palestine and terrorizing the Palestinians. That drew even louder applause. You can bet that the Americans were not pleased with that.
Anwar is correct to support Ukraine. Malaysia, like Ukraine, also has powerful neighbors and had indeed been invaded by one. Only Sukarno’s ineptness and corruption made the 1960s konfrontasi fail.
Malaysia now has an even more powerful neighbor, China. Unlike Indonesia, our border with China is not terrestrial but maritime, in the now-contested South China Sea. As such it is much more difficult to define and defend. China is flexing her naval muscles with its so-called “Nine-dash Line” claim. This relying on moldy documents to exert territorial claim is as old as humankind, or at least written documents. It would not be the first time that wars would be started based on such purported deeds.
Anwar drew enthusiastic applauses when he condemned the recent spate of Qur’an burning in Sweden, and when he voiced the plight of the poor. As for the former, hatred and intolerance are just that. Hiding behind the façade of freedom of expression is but a perversion of enlightened values.
Anwar reiterated the Swedish Qur’an burning incident later in a Friday khutba (sermon) at the Islamic Cultural Center of New York. Here again Anwar’s genius in reading his audience was on clear display. He related his Madani government’s response, translating the Qur’an into Scandinavian languages for free distribution. Counter intuitive, as with literally throwing fuel (or paper in this case) into the fire. However as Anwar so eloquently elaborated in his khutba, only knowledge (ilm) and wisdom (hikmah) could win over evil and ignorance.
Anwar’s informal session with local Malaysian students was refreshingly candid. Together with their probing questions and Anwar’s substantive responses, that encounter brings home the value of sending Malaysians to great American colleges instead of the usual Creekville State universities or Third World institutions.
In the epigraph to his biography of the Prophet, s.a.w., Muhammad: Man and Prophet, the Saudi writer Adil Salahi quoted the advice his father gave him. “… [L]oving Prophet Muhammad could only be demonstrated by following his teachings, not by singing his praises.” In being eloquent both as a secular leader as he did in addressing the UNGA and a few hours later as a spiritual one with his khutba, Anwar emulates our great Prophet, s.a.w., in blending affairs mualamat (secular) with ibadat (spiritual).
May Allah continue guiding Anwar Ibrahim to lead Malaysia to a better, peaceful and prosperous future. Ameen!
