Tok Mat: Trump invited for 'kenduri Asean', not 'kenduri Malaysia'

Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan today urged government critics to understand that the invitation to US President Donald Trump to the 47th Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur was done in Malaysia’s capacity as the Asean chair.

He stressed that Malaysia, as the association’s “Dato’ Lembaga” - a tribal chief position in Perpatih culture - cannot be selective when inviting heads of state to the meeting.

“This is not a bilateral invitation between two countries. This is ‘kenduri Asean’, not ‘kenduri Malaysia’.

“As the Dato' Lembaga for Asean this year, we have to invite all ‘anak buah’ (Asean members) and the leaders of other communities.

“We cannot invite one and exclude another. That would not be good diplomacy. Asean must be seen as a group of countries that practice neutrality,” the minister told a press conference this morning.

Mohamad hails from Negeri Sembilan, where the Perpatih culture is still being practised by a large section of its community.

The government has been under criticism for inviting Trump to the summit, which will be held in Kuala Lumpur later this month.

Some have urged Putrajaya to rescind the invitation as a sign of protest against Trump’s strong support for Israel and its genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.

However, the government had defended the move, with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim saying the summit would provide a diplomatic platform to continue raising the Palestinian issue.

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