Oleh/By		:	DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD 
Tempat/Venue 	: 	SRI PERDANA, KUALA LUMPUR 
Tarikh/Date 	: 	09/02/98 
Tajuk/Title  	: 	THE OFFICIAL DINNER IN HONOUR OF 
			HIS EXCELLENCY RAFIC HARIRI PRIME 
			MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF LEBANON 



  1.   Let  me  say how happy we are to receive  you,  dear
  brother,  once  again  in  Malaysia.   I  know   and   we
  Malaysians  all  know that you are here because  you  are
  our  friend,  you are concerned about us  and  desire  to
  cooperate  with us in good times and in bad  times.   For
  our  part  we  have always looked upon you as  a  friend,
  sharing  in  your  sorrows and  your  joys,  despite  the
  distance that separates us.
  
  2.    Last  year  I visited your great country,  Lebanon,
  together  with  my  wife and an entourage  consisting  of
  Government officials and businessmen.  We were very  keen
  then   to   participate  in  our   small   way   in   the
  reconstruction  of  your country.   Our  business  people
  thought  they  could  take up some of  the  projects  you
  offered  which  would  contribute to  the  rebuilding  of
  Beirut  and other parts of your country.  Our businessmen
  had  the  experience and the means to invest in  Lebanon,
  modestly    no    doubt,   but    hopefully    not    too
  insignificantly.
  
  3.    But  today  we  regret very much that  we  have  to
  withdraw.   The  carpet had been pulled  from  under  our
  feet.   We  no  longer  have the  wherewithal  to  invest
  abroad.  In fact even in our own country our capacity  to
  invest  and  develop has been diminished. Suddenly  after
  years  of  prosperity  created  by  our  own  system  and
  efforts  we  have been made poor, along  with  the  other
  countries   of   South  East  Asia.    The   process   of
  impoverishment is very simple.  It is just  by  devaluing
  our currency.
  
  4.    We of South East Asia are told that our Governments
  are  corrupt, indulge in cronyism and nepotism.   We  are
  not  transparent. Our system and our way of doing  things
  were  not  only  wrong  but were  thoroughly  wicked  and
  oppressive on our people.
  
  5.    You  may  have noticed during your last visit  that
  the    allegedly   oppressive,   despotic   and   corrupt
  Governments  that  we  have  in  this  region  had  built
  prosperous   countries   and   prosperous   people.    In
  Malaysia,  the  growth averaged eight percent  per  annum
  and   per  capita  grew  from  US$300  at  the  time   of
  independence in 1957 to US$5,000 in June 1997.
  
  6.    There  was no unemployment in Malaysia.  Indeed  we
  created  so many jobs  that workers from other  countries
  flocked to Malaysia to share in our prosperity.
  
  7.    Our  multiracial people lived in harmony and worked
  closely  together.   They  helped  make  our  affirmative
  action  successful  in creating a more equitable  society
  despite   our   many  different  racial   and   religious
  affinities.
  
  8.    With  our  own  money  we built  roads  and  ports,
  airports, waterworks and power plants, railways etc.   We
  built  up shipping lines and airlines which compare  well
  even  with  those of developed countries.   We  built  up
  trade  to become the 19th biggest trading nation  in  the
  world,   exporting  not  just  commodities   but   mostly
  sophisticated  manufactured goods.  We built  no  statues
  or  useless  monuments unless of course dams  and  roads,
  ports  and  airports  and  buildings  are  classified  as
  monuments.
  
  9.    No  segment  of our society was ignored.   Everyone
  rich  and poor benefited and were enriched.  Poverty  was
  for  practical purposes banished.  If we had cronies  and
  practised  nepotism then we must consider all the  people
  of  Malaysia  as cronies and family members  for  all  of
  them  gained from the administration and policies of  the
  Malaysian  Government and indeed from the Governments  of
  the tiger economies of South East Asia.
  
  10.   Now,  after  so  many years of profiting  from  our
  economic  policy, we are told that our  ways  were  wrong
  and  have caused them to lose confidence.  By pulling out
  their  capital  and by other ways at their disposal  they
  have  taken away the wealth that we had built up, leaving
  us  practically  destitute.  Indeed some  countries  have
  been  bankrupted  by  them, resulting  in  millions  upon
  millions  of workers becoming unemployed, causing  social
  and  political unrest where once there was prosperity and
  stability.  All these we are told are the work of  market
  forces in order to discipline the Governments.
  
  11.   But  whereas  our  allegedly corrupt  cronyism  and
  nepotism  had  created prosperity  for  all  our  people,
  giving  jobs and good income to everyone, we  are  seeing
  market  forces  doing just the opposite.  Today  all  the
  prosperity of the countries of South East Asia  is  gone,
  the workers are unemployed by the millions, thousands  of
  good  companies have been bankrupted, the  stock  markets
  have  collapsed,  banks and finance companies  forced  to
  close  and  generally  poverty and destitution  has  once
  again  descended  on our people.  These  once  prosperous
  countries  were  forced to beg for loans to  repay  their
  debts  which  have become bloated due to the depreciation
  of their currency.
  
  12.   But  now  it  is  suggested  that  help  should  be
  withheld  until  these governments uphold  human  rights.
  What  about  the  rights of the millions of  workers  who
  have  lost their jobs and become destitutes.  Devaluation
  of  their money has deprived them of their livelihood. It
  is  not the national Governments which did this.   It  is
  the  market forces let loose by certain Governments which
  did  this.   Shouldn't these Governments  be  accused  of
  violating human rights also?
  
  13.   There  is so much self-righteousness and  hypocrisy
  that  we  have  lost  faith in  those  who  preach  human
  rights.  Actually 'might is right' has come back  with  a
  vengeance.  We have now decided to accept it and  to  bow
  to  forces  which we cannot resist.  We know that  if  we
  don't  our people will be punished by depriving  them  of
  whatever little that they have left.
  
  14.   I  must admit to being confused.  The countries  of
  South  East  Asia had achieved prosperity to  the  extent
  that it was described as a miracle.  The Governments  and
  the  administration  were not  perfect  of  course.   But
  which  Government  in the world is or has  been  perfect?
  Every  sin  committed by the Governments  of  South  East
  Asian  countries  has  been committed  by  every  country
  including  those who talk incessantly of good  Government
  and  governance.   Indeed  in  many  instances  they  are
  worse,  being more corrupt, running bigger deficits  etc.
  And  yet  they have not been punished, they have not  had
  their  books inspected, been told to mend their  ways  or
  else.
  
  15.  My brother, our two countries are in the process  of
  reconstruction; you from the ravages of war and  we  from
  the  ravages  caused by an unprecedented assault  on  our
  economy.   There  is  much that we  have  in  common  and
  therefore  there is much that we can do  together.   Even
  weak  countries working together can bolster each other's
  strength.   And we are not exactly the weakest  economies
  in  the  world.   I feel certain that through  friendship
  and  cooperation  our  two  countries  will  be  able  to
  recover and develop, insya-Allah.

 
 



 
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