Tunku Abdul Rahman and Malaysia’s pioneer diplomats

Tunku Abdul Rahman (right), Malaysia's first Prime Minister, with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi during her visit to Malaysia in 1968. — National Archives of Malaysia

As Malaysia observes the 57th anniversary of its formation today (Sept 16, 2020), it is appropriate to remember Tunku Abdul Rahman, the country’s first prime minister and his pre-eminent influence on the nation’s international diplomacy in the first few years after our independence from colonial rule in 1957.

The Tunku almost single-handedly set up the Foreign Ministry, then known as the Ministry of External Affairs. When he became Chief Minister of Malaya after the July 1955 General Election, he set about laying the framework of the external affairs section. Apart from (later Tun) Ghazali Shafie, Tunku seemed to have relied on his British civil servants and some of his contacts from Johor, Kedah and Selangor to set it up. By National Day, Aug 31, 1957, the Ministry of External Affairs seemed the most Malayanised government agency although there were still British officers handling issues of security, finance and the most important internal audit responsibility.