Oleh/By		:	DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD 
Tempat/Venue 	: 	GOVERNMENT HOUSE, PORT LOUIS 
Tarikh/Date 	: 	16/08/88 
Tajuk/Title  	: 	THE OFFICIAL DINNER HOSTED IN HIS 
			HONOUR BY HIS EXCELLENCY SIR 
			ANEEROOD JUGNAUTHTHE PRIME 
			MINISTER OF MAURITIUS 




 Your Excellency Sir Aneerood Jugnauth,
     and Lady Jugnauth;
Excellencies;
Distinguished Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
    It is a great pleasure for me to be here in Port Louis,
a city I am visiting for the first time.  In the short while
I  have  been  here I have discovered just how beautiful and
cosmopolitan Mauritius is.   I am  especially  touched,  Mr.
Prime  Minister, by the warm welcome accorded to me, my wife
and my delegation since  our  arrival.    May  I  take  this
opportunity  to  express our gratitude for the very warm and
gracious hospitality which you have so kindly shown to us.
Mr. Prime Minister,
2.   Allow me  at  this  juncture  to  extend  my  heartiest
congratulations  to  you  and  your  partners  in the ruling
alliance for having  emerged  victorious  in  three  general
elections consecutively.  The victory is a clear endorsement
of your leadership that has so ably steered Mauritius on the
path  of progress.  I sincerely look forward to working with
you  and  your  colleagues  to  enhance  relations   between
Mauritius  and Malaysia for the benefit of our two countries
and peoples in the years ahead.   These  contacts  are  very
much  in  keeping  with  the  concept of greater South South
relations.
3.   We meet, Mr. Prime Minister,  at  a  time  of  profound
changes within countries and in relations between countries.
Societies   in   transition   pose  particular  problems  of
management to  decision-makers.    Often  solutions  require
trans-national  adjustments.    Yet  in  a  world  that only
grudgingly  concedes  an   objective   inter-dependence   of
nations,  adjustment  processes  are painfully slow.   Small
nations such as ours cannot afford to  wait  for  a  general
global enlightenment.  Our needs are more pressing.  We each
have  to  seize  the  initiative  to forge linkages with the
like-minded, to build to  the  best  of  our  abilities  the
economic   safety-net   so  important  for  the  independent
survival of our countries.
4.   I observe with admiration,  Mr.  Prime  Minister,  that
Mauritius has equipped itself well to meet the challenges of
a  society  in  transition.    You  and your government have
wisely guided the affairs of  Mauritius  both  at  home  and
abroad.  Your creative policies at home have been matched by
constructive  initiatives regionally and internationally.  I
look forward to working closely with you in  our  endeavours
to create a better life for both our peoples.
Mr Prime Minister,
5.   Mauritius and Malaysia share a lot of things in common.
We  are small nations and our economies are export-oriented.
Our well-being depend much on the  vitality  of  the  global
economy  and  it is therefore important that we endeavour to
do our bit to contribute towards the openness of  the  world
economy.    We can and should work together to safeguard our
vital interests both bilaterally and multilaterally.
6.   I am happy, Mr. Prime Minister, that our two  countries
have  already  made  a  beginning  in  this  direction.   We
established formal  diplomatic  relations  in  January  last
year.   Subsequently, Mauritius hosted an official Malaysian
delegation and a follow-up business delegation  towards  the
middle of the same year.  We have signed today the agreement
to  establish  a Joint Commission for Economic and Technical
Cooperation.  The establishment of the Joint Commission will
enable our two countries not only to facilitate our  growing
relations but also to take stock of their state from time to
time  and make running adjustments as and when necessary.  I
am  confident  that  our  economic  relations,  at   present
somewhat  narrow  in  scope,  could  be  both  expanded  and
deepened for our mutual benefit.   Our  mutual  progress  in
recent  years  offer  excellent opportunities to explore new
avenues for cooperation even as we seek to entrench previous
and present ones.  There are elements of complementarity  in
our  economies that we could usefully develop for our mutual
benefit.
Mr. Prime Minister,
7.   While  it  is  important  that  relations  between  two
countries  are premised on healthy economic interactions, it
is also equally essential that political links are  cemented
at the highest possible level.  I hope my visit to Mauritius
will soon be followed by your own visit to Malaysia and that
many more Mauritian political and business leaders will also
take the opportunity to do so.
8.   Mauritius  and Malaysia share common membership in many
international  groupings.    Our  basic   perspectives   and
approaches  do not differ much.  The great moral and ethical
problems  confronting  us  today  -  racial  injustice   and
political   repression  under  apartheid  in  South  Africa,
Israel's illegal occupation  of  Arab  lands  and  continued
opposition  to  the  creation  of  a  Palestinian state, the
conflict in Afghanistan and the occupation of  Kampuchea  by
foreign   forces,  the  ever-widening  North-South  economic
inequities and the ever-escalating arms race - require  that
we should cooperate more closely to strengthen international
solidarity  to  resolve  them.    Malaysia,  like Mauritius,
believes that the United Nations has a primary role to  play
in ensuring international peace and security.
Mr. Prime Minister,
9.   Allow  me  to  express  my sincere appreciation for the
time you have taken and the effort you and  your  Government
have  made  to  make my brief visit not only useful from the
official point of view but also memorable from the  personal
point of view.
10.  May  I  now invite this distinguished gathering to join
me in a toast to the Government and people of Mauritius  and
to  His  Excellency  Sir Aneerood Jugnauth and Lady Jugnauth
and to the ever-expanding relations  between  Mauritius  and
Malaysia.
     Thank you.