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VIEW ON ASIA briefing
series
 View
on Malaysia
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Victoria Mence
Released: July/August 2005
Executive summary
In late July 2005, Australia concluded a second round of negotiations
on a possible bilateral Free Trade Agreement with Malaysia with
the agreement marked for completion by mid-2006, and indicated its
intention to accede to ASEAN’s non-aggression treaty by the
end of the year. As our trade relationship with Malaysia and the
region expands, the necessity to develop a deeper understanding
of this important regional neighbour grows. Australia has had a
long relationship with Malaysia, with a particularly strong emphasis
on trade and security between the two countries. With signs that
the new Malaysian leadership under Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi will tread a more conciliatory path towards Australia, a
historic opportunity is presented to Australia to build on this
relationship. A robust relationship must also encompass shared values
and a shared commitment to fundamental human rights that is the
cornerstone of good governance. There will be hurdles to overcome,
the least of which will be Australia’s own capacity and confidence
to embrace a more humanitarian approach overseas and to expand domestic
rights and freedoms even in the current age of international migration
and terrorism. However, if Australia is to become an influential
regional neighbour, the need to progress this relationship with
Malaysia beyond trade and security is essential.
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Victoria Mence has a degree in Bachelor of Social Sciences and
undertook an internship at Uniya as part of this degree. She is
presently an Honours student at the University of Sydney. View
on Asia is a publication of the Uniya Jesuit Social Justice
Centre, a research centre based in Sydney’s Kings Cross, Australia.
The views expressed in this report are those of the author. Thanks
to Jojo Fung SJ and Paul Dass SJ for reviewing an earlier draft
of this paper. Photo credit for the mosque image: Christopher Rayan/SXC.
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