Anwar to give Dudley memorial oration
By Ilica Malkanthi Karunaratne
The annual Dudley Senanayake memorial oration organised by the Dudley Senanayake Commemoration Foundation will be delivered this year by Anwar Ibrahim at the Ceylon Continental Hotel on October 16 at 5.30 p.m.
One of the most respected political personalities in the region, Anwar Ibrahim is known for his steadfast stance against corruption and for never wavering in his principles all through his political life and remarkable journey in politics.
Anwar Ibrahim
Among the milestones of his political life are being Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister from 1993 to 1998 and Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1998. He is respected for his principled stance against corruption and his excellent management of the economy during a somewhat turbulent period of coping with a financial crisis.
Viewed as one of the forefathers of The Asian Renaissance, he is a leading proponent of greater co-operation among civilizations. Democracy is the keyword for him in all issues and his is an authoritative voice in bridging the widening gap between East and West.
Born in Penang in 1947, he had his early education in his hometown from where he gained admission to the prestigious Malay College at Kuala Kangsar. He went on to the University of Malaya, where he was to witness the tragedy of the 1969 race riots.
During this period he led protests against the Vietnam war and several demonstrations on domestic social issues such as corruption, poverty and the plight of the marginalized. Both his intellectual and leadership qualities came to the fore at this time and he was appointed a member of the Ad hoc Advisory group to the Secretary General of Youth Affairs in 1973.
During his University days, he championed many causes. In 1971, he formed The National Youth Movement of Malaysia primarily to promote and uphold the principles of modern Islam and to campaign for moral upliftment and social justice. This was a period of great hardship for many sectors in Malaysia due to a weak economy. Anwar became a target as President of the multi ethnic National Youth Council and was detained without trial for 22 months for championing the cause of hard pressed poor farmers in a northern Malaysian state.
In 1982, he was invited to join the United Malays National Organisation by then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed. His rise from then on was meteoric. He was unrelenting in fighting corruption and deeply committed to the ideals of empowerment, justice, equity and above all to freedom and democracy.
There was a growing distance between his ideals and the authoritative governance of Mahathir Mohamed which eventually led to confrontation. He was responsible as acting Prime Minister for introducing the controversial but undoubtedly effective anti-corruption legislation which held public servants accountable for corrupt practices even after they ceased to hold office. In his political life he has been courageous in his emphasis on social justice, poverty eradication and education as priorities.
He has been as active on the international front by advocating civilizational dialogue and the ideals of mutual co-existence of civilizations and interplay of different social, cultural and spiritual ideas. He has been President of the UNESCO World Council, Chairman of the Development Committee of World Bank and International Monetary Fund, Honorary President of AccountAbility and Chairman of The Foundation for the Future.
His contributions to humanity were internationally recognized when he was awarded the Presidential medal by Georgetown University and an honorary doctorate by the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines.
Malaysia enjoyed unprecedented prosperity during his tenure as Finance Minister. He was named one of the top four Finance Ministers by Euromoney and Asiamoney named him Finance Minister of the year in 1966.His prescriptions saved the Malaysian economy and brought him worldwide accolades including the title of Asian of the Year by Newsweek International in 1998. His calls for reform increased his popularity and led to him being dismissed from the government and tried on trumped up charges. His trial and conviction were widely criticized by the international community and many world leaders called for his release.
Anwar was finally released from solitary confinement after six years in 2004. He used this time to read widely on a variety of subjects including English literature, politics and religion.
He has lectured at Oxford University, John Hopkins and Georgetown University. His fame as a speaker draws crowds as large as fifty or sixty thousand people. The Friedrich Naumann Stiftung and its Resident Representative, Mrs Sagarika Delgoda provided the sponsorship that has made his visit to Sri Lanka possible.