06 April 2015 - Cultural and people-to-people ties between the Philippines and Malaysia received a boost when the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur and the Filipino Businessmen and Professional Caucus (FBPC) donated a set of books to the Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia (PNM or Malaysian National Library) at its main office in Kuala Lumpur last March 24.
Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia J. Eduardo Malaya and FBPC Chair Edna Encarnacion turned over copies of Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, and award-winning novels, notably F. Sionil Jose’s Viajero, Jessica Hagedorn’s Dogeaters, and Miguel Syjuco’s Ilustrado. Also part of the donation were books highlighting the rich heritage of Muslim Filipinos, notably the Children of the Ever Changing Moon, a collection of essay by Muslim Filipino writers edited by Gutierrez Mangansakan III, and the Masjid/Mosque Architecture: Jewels of Philippine Islamic Faith, a book on Muslim architecture published by the Philippine National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
PNM Director General Nafisah Ahmad conveyed the National Library’s appreciation for the donation of books and called it “timely”. “It will form part of the Library’s Exhibit on noted ASEAN works from April to June in line with Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship this year,” she said.
The Ambassador also donated copies of the three books he wrote and/or edited—So Help Me God: the Presidents of the Philippines and their Inaugural Addresses; Frontlines of Diplomacy: Conversations with Philippine Ambassadors, an oral history of 37 Philippine ambassadors and three diplomatic spouses and, Philippines-Malaysia Agreements (1964-2014): Cornerstones of a Partnership, a compendium of Philippine-Malaysia agreements.
Ambassador Malaya cited the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement on Culture and Heritage Cooperation between the two countries during the State Visit of President Benigno S. Aquino III to Kuala Lumpur in February 2014, and he said that he looked forward to further joint projects between the Embassy and the Library and other Malaysian cultural institutions and groups, particularly in spreading a culture through reading.
The PNM is under the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism and Culture and is currently undertaking three major activities: management of its current resources, developing its collections of Malaysia and international-related publications and other information materials for its users, and providing information to its clientele. END