We were very pleased to be joined by not only John Michell, the Queensland State Manager for DFAT, but also the Hon John Mickel MLA, the outgoing Speaker of the Queensland Parliament and other distinguished guests. Mr Speaker has been a strong supporter of the AMBCQ and it was an honour to host him during his last few days as a Member of Parliament.
Miles, as he insisted we call him in typical Australian
style, has been the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia since 2010, so
this trip marks the halfway point of his Malaysian stint. Traditionally High
Commissioners return to Australia halfway through their deployment to
liaise with Australian based stakeholders and to receive and provide briefings
to their DFAT colleagues and to the Government.
Miles has also served in Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia,the Philippines, Iraq and France, so he is very familiar
with the region, and indeed could be described as an "old hand" in
regional diplomacy.
Miles provided our group with an update on the current state
of the relationship between Australia and Malaysia and the close collaboration
on key regional issues such as trade and defence. He spoke of the relationship as being one of
genuine warmth and cooperation, from the highest levels of Government. And this can indeed be noted in the shared
and collaborative approach to people smuggling.
Whatever you think of the Malaysian solution that the Gillard Government
developed with the Malaysian Government, it at the very least demonstrates the
level of cooperation and understanding between the two countries in dealing
with this issue that affects the whole region.
Such a deal would not have been remotely possible a generation ago and
it attests to the hard work and importance successive Australian Governments
have invested in the relationship since the Keating era.
He also shared his insights into a number of key challenges
facing Malaysian society. One issue that arose at the lunch was the ongoing challenges of dealing with the 'brain drain' - the loss of many
citizens of Chinese and Indian ancestry in particular, to migration
overseas. Over 400,000 Malaysians have
migrated to Singapore alone, with other considerable numbers exiting to
Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the US and the UK. Often these Malaysians represent the
country's brightest talents in business, science, medicine, academia, engineering, and many other areas and while it is our gain, it is a continual and
persistent drain on Malaysia's human resources and future capacity.
Miles also spoke about the challenge for the Malaysian
economy to move from its current developing state to a more advanced economy,
providing higher end goods and services. It was obvious to all that the brain drain is a barrier to this progression, as is the country's
current dependency on cheap migrant labour from other countries around the
region. As these other countries advance
and develop, they may well challenge Malaysia in the same industries it now
excels in, and Malaysia may lose its attraction for these migrant workers and
its attraction to overseas investors. In
Miles's opinion, the Malaysian Government is aware of these issues. However, some of
the unique complexities of the Malaysian electoral system leave it in a challenging position to manoeuvre from.
There was also the opportuity for an informal discussion
around the table, with a number of questions posed to Miles, which he answered
in a sincere and honest manner. Our good
friend John Mickel was then invited to give the vote of thanks. As I explained
on the day, with John stepping down from his position as Member for Logan and
as the Speaker of the House, it was to be one of our last opportunities to hear
from Mr Speaker. He gave a truly humbling and wonderful
wrap to the AMBCQ, and also spoke about the essential role that AMBCQ plays in the relationship between Malaysia and
Australia.
All over, it was a very successful event. Thank you to all
the AMBCQ members and supporters who attended the event, to John Michell of
DFAT for facilitating the event, to Miles Kupa for his presence and insights and to Speaker John Mickel for his time.
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