Unity in Diversity was the message that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak delivered last Sunday to about 900 Malaysians in France who were invited to the first 1Malaysia Open House to celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
The Prime Minister was accompanied by his wife, Datin Sri Rosmah Mansor.
The Prime Minister reminded Malaysians that more than ever, we need to cultivate strength among ourselves and to foster a solidarity that would soldier on well after 51 years.
He said Malaysians needed to maintain a good image of the country so that investors and tourists would choose the country as a destination.
One Malaysia abroad: Impeccably dressed Malaysian students who attended the function. Najib said he was glad that more tourists from France were discovering Malaysia.
The audience included foreign dignitaries, Malaysian ministers and high-ranking Malaysian officials as well as personalities like Princess Sekina from Kedah, Datuk Michelle Yeoh from Ipoh and Datuk Jean Todt from Paris.
After the speech, Malaysians rushed towards the stage and had themselves photographed with the Prime Minister and Rosmah who remained poised and cool in an attractive silk baju kurung of orange and black.
I, for one, noticed her Louis Vuitton silk scarf in grey, the colour in vogue and graded this as positive as I am sure that the fashion-conscious French would have taken this French touch with appreciation.
Our First Lady had done right by her impeccable appearance and good taste because we must not forget that the international media has been watching First Ladies for years, and commenting on their elegance or their lack of it.
Today, there is a heightened excitement over whether Mrs Michele Obama and Madame Carla Sarkozy are outdoing each other over style. Or, are both ladies having the same preferences for clothes?
The international media has, unwittingly set up a First Lady watch and in time, a Best Dressed First Lady List may be drawn up.
Newspapers and women’s magazines the world over, have continuously featured a range of prominent ladies from Princess Grace Kelly of Monaco to Jacqueline Kennedy and Princess Diana,
This scrutiny will not stop and many First Ladies have understood well that the clothes they wear will make impact and that they are promoting their respective country.
When I mingled with the crowd, I was delighted to capture the way Malaysians dressed for an Open House do in such a well-appointed venue, the Pavillon Porte Dauphine restaurant that sits on a rare piece of property with a garden and trees in the posh 16th district of Paris.
They were told to bring their children along and some families came dressed in Malaysian batik.
The turnout and the food were fabulous. Malaysian students who are now studying in France enjoyed not only satay, char kueh teow, roti canai and Penang laksa but also an assortment of French buffet delicacies like asparagus shoots rolled in a strip of smoked salmon and a wide choice of French dessert.
Women from the Malaysian Perwakilan (Association of Wives of Malaysian diplomats) in Paris completed the generous spread with kuih-muih that were prepared under the supervision of Datin Dr Saradha, wife of Datuk S. Thanarajasingam, the Malaysian ambassador to France who had worked vigilently and diligently with the entire Malaysian embassy staff for the success of this event.
The layout and outdoor seating arrangement for the Malaysian buffet came under the care of MATRADE staff with Nurdiana Abdullah, who hails from Limbang in Sarawak, directing as the Trade Commissioner.
I spoke to one of the two Malaysian chefs who were flown in to prepare the culinary treat.
He told me that I could call him “Pak Lah from Hotel Maya in KL”. He gave me a hearty laugh. In the course of our chit-chat, both of us discovered that I have been to his kampung in Simpang Pulai, Perak.
Then it struck me that this is how it should be — the cheerful and happy-go-lucky Malaysian who loves a harmless joke, who spoons out hospitality the way Chef Pak Lah was doing, serving indiscriminately, the long queue of fellow Malaysians who waited in an orderly manner, to try out his dishes.
His teammate, Chef Shaiful from the Royal Chulan, another hotel in KL, was also from Perak and just as jovial.
Coincidentally, two evenings later, we three Perakians found ourselves chit-chatting again in the kitchen of the Unesco restaurant where the two chefs prepared for another reception hosted by the Prime Minister. That was where I learnt that they were self-taught and self-made chefs who can whip out an authentic Malaysian dish at any time and place without having been to a catering school.
The lesson that I draw here is — the reliability and strength of self-taught men and women and that, secondly, I made new friends by reaching out.
From food we now adjourn to another Malaysian trait that came to the fore when Ista Muzika, the Malaysian band from Istana Budaya set the ambience for a finale of Malaysian music where Malaysians took to the floor and danced the joget with gusto.
Thanks to Jeffri Munir, director of the Malaysian Tourism Office in Paris, foreign guests could see this fun loving side of Malaysians who, by nature, love to sing and to dance.
Jeffri, who hails from Johor, made arrangements for the band to perform here for the occasion.
When the evening ended, the spirit of 1Malaysia should follow but more visible and audible is that Malaysians are now referring to 1Malaysia as a motto.
The Prime Minister also spoke about the need for leadership. Every Malaysian who heed this, can contribute towards nation-building and especially those who are better educated and more exposed. We must reach out to each other.
In school, older Malaysians were taught the moral fable of the father who had nine sons who quarrelled endlessly among themselves.
One day, the old man asked his sons to gather around him. He showed them how he could break one stick on his knee without effort. Then he took a bundle of nine sticks and tried to break it but failed.
The boys realised that if they are divided and stood alone, they could be easily attacked. Therefore they must reach out to each other and learn to build up a solid and united front against enemies and adversities.
From that day onwards, they stopped feuding among themselves.
Reaching out to each other will lead to negotiation for peaceful settlement of all disputes.
Unity is strength but unity in diversity is even better as it is both strength and cultural wealth.
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