The 1994 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts

RESPONSE of Abdul Samad Ismail

Ramon Magsaysay Award Presentation Ceremonies
Manila, Philippines

 I stand before this distinguished gathering with a deep sense of both pride and humility in the shadow of the great man in whose memory this award was created.

I am proud to be chosen for the Ramon Magsaysay Award and, at the same time, humbled by the achievements of your third president in pursuit of the ideals to which he dedicated his life. I only hope that I am not too unworthy a recipient of this prestigious prize.

I am grateful indeed to the board of trustees for this award. You do me and my country great honor. You honor journalists who, in the arduous years of our independence struggle, not only wrote the first draft of history, but also influenced its course. It is on behalf of these journalists of bygone years and the generations that succeeded them in our profession that I accept this award.

Very few of my former colleagues who selflessly served the cause of our country have survived to receive the recognition they so richly deserve. I count myself fortunate to have gone through those difficult decades, although not, I must admit, without retaining some scars. But the rewards have been more than gratifying. Malaysia today stands tall in the community of nations, proud and confident as it keeps its tryst with destiny.

A new generation of Malaysian journalists has emerged, schooled in the culture of nation-building that transcends ethnic, religious, and cultural barriers. They seek inspiration from the rich traditions of our diverse society to face the challenges of a new era as regional and global citizens.

Malaysia and the Philippines are irrevocably bound by ties of history that make vicissitudes in our relationship only transient and passing episodes. You have fought courageously against foreign and native oppressors in glorious battles that have become an indelible part of the region’s history. Jose Rizal is as much our hero as he is yours. In him we share a common heritage.

Some people have started to talk of a Malay diaspora, not unlike the earlier diaspora of the Chinese and Indians worldwide, though not quite on such a large scale. We may look at it as the stirring of a people, stretching from our Nusantara to South Africa and Suriman, seeking not territorial or political hegemony, but trading opportunities and markets in a world undergoing dramatic change and becoming increasingly smaller.

Finally, I would like on this auspicious occasion, which by a happy coincidence falls on the thirty-seventh anniversary of my country’s independence, to extend fraternal greetings to your people, especially media practitioners, on behalf of Malaysian journalists.