By Zakir Hussain SyedMalaysia has been like a second home for me ever since I was based there for three years as Cricket Development Manager Asian Cricket Council in 2002 before resigning.
I first went to Malaysia in 1975 as a TV commentator to cover the World Cup Hockey.
I have seen Malaysia grow from a small time state to one of the most important countries in Asia with an economy that is one of the most prosperous in Asia and also at international level.
Despite presence of nearly half a dozen ethnic components, the Malaysian society is so tolerant that no ethnic group feels threatened.
Former Prime Minister Mahatir Mohammad deserves credit for guiding a small nation to not only economic prosperity but making it the tourist hub of the world with tourists from Middle East and Australia thronging Kuala Lumpur.
However, this economic prosperity has brought an increase in crime rate and lawlessness.
Even FairPark Hotel in Ipoh, which had been selected by the organisers as Media Hotel was not safe. This hotel is very convenient because of its close proximity to Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium.
Somebody broke into the room of Sandeep Nakai; our colleague from India and chairman AIPS Hockey Commission, and stole his laptop and camera.
The tragic aspect of this theft was the extremely valuable data in his laptop including the thesis on which he was working. The young manager of this hotel behaved more like a police officer than a hospitality manager.
I was myself nearly run over by a motorcyclist on a footpath. Extreme traffic congestion notwithstanding, quite a few roadside eating houses placed their tables on the footpaths especially in the evenings which makes it difficult for pedestrians and with the remnants of food thrown all around, the filth at many places especially in central Kuala Lampur and bazaars near World Trade Center are spoiling the surroundings.
Purse snatching is on the rise. However, despite these small irritations, the friendliness of the people is heart warming and one finds most Malaysians helpful and pleasant to talk to. Mountbatten Hotel near the central railway station in Kuala Lampur is a reminder of the colonial heritage of Malaysia.
Ipoh reminds one of Model Town Lahore in the early 1960s with large spacious houses and green areas. Model Town Lahore was one of the few settlements in Lahore which had well preserved hockey, cricket and football grounds along with badminton and tennis courts in Model Town Club.
It now has a beautiful park. Similarly Ipoh has retained its rustic beauty with large open spaces, green areas and playgrounds specially hockey and football grounds which are crowded in the evenings.
My four journalist colleagues from India included a woman who is one of the few female hockey journalists in the world, the other one who is a real professional is of course the charming Susan Edgehill from England.
The Indian girl Uthra Ganesan looks like a stern schoolteacher most of the times until she smiles and then she is different altogether. We used to have a female hockey journalist by the name of Farhana Ayaz who was doing quite well until her migration to America. I wish Pakistan had more female sports journalists.
This time Sultan Azlan Shah Tournament was one of the most fiercely contested with fairly high standard being exhibited throughout the tournament.
This is how international events should be. For Pakistan, the performance of their hockey team was encouraging but as I said at the start, they have a long and difficult climb back to the top.
concluded
(Zakir Hussain Syed is Pakistan’s internationally renowned sports administrator, sports broadcaster and sports analyst)
The Daily Times
