KUALA LUMPUR – The importance of human rights is in line with what is advocated in the Malaysia Madani concept, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.
In a Facebook post, Anwar said he had pointed this out during a meeting with United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk at the Parliament yesterday.
“A country needs to have a vision based on the basic values needed in a harmonious, prosperous and peaceful society without forgetting the concept of compassion and human rights,” he said.
The prime minister said Volker and his delegation were invited by the government to visit Malaysia.
He said it was part of Malaysia’s ongoing efforts to foster cooperation with the UN to increase awareness and understanding of human rights for all to benefit together.
In a separate post, Anwar said he also received a courtesy visit from the Foreign Trade State Minister of the United Arab Emirates Thani Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi.
Among the topics discussed in the meeting, also attended by Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Aziz, was bilateral cooperation between Malaysia and the UAE, especially in the economic field.
“Alhamdulillah, many collaborations have been worked on between agencies and companies of both countries before and also those planned for the future,” he said.
The prime minister said a more cohesive and close commitment is expected to be explored through deeper economic cooperation, particularly through the comprehensive economic partnership agreement that is being negotiated.
Tengku Zafrul, in a statement yesteray, said both countries confirmed their commitment to sign the agreement by this year.
As Malaysia’s first free trade agreement with members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), it is expected to pave the way towards deeper economic cooperation and foster an environment conducive to increased trade and investment flows, not only between the two countries – but also Asean and the GCC region in general.