28 March 2022 www.bahrainthismonth.com interview A CLOSE BROTHERHOOD Bahrain and Malaysia have had a long-standing diplomatic partnership, with the Embassy of Malaysia established in 2003, enabling bilateral political collaboration on aspects such as commerce, trade and investment. This month, Bahrain This Month’s Kristian Harrison spoke to the Malaysian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain, Shazryll Zahiran, about his diplomatic career and his plans to bolster ties between the two nations. Thank you for talking to us, Your Excellency. Firstly, can you tell us about your fascinating career so far? I’ve been in service for 22 years, although the first seven of those was actually in the private sector. After studying Economics and Business Studies, I joined several multinational companies including Rothman International, Matsushita and Ernst & Young. Then I joined Malaysia’s largest automobile dealership, Produa. I then joined the diplomatic service and worked in Bosnia for five years. I felt that I could contribute more to society in this field as opposed to business; I believe I’ve always had an inclination of giving back to people and with my history in the commercial industry I had an opportunity to do that. I then returned to Malaysia, taking a government post centred on trade and economics, during which I was sent abroad for various postings and training, the most important of which was in the Vietnamese city of Ho Chi Minh. It was actually a real eye-opener for me because knowing how Vietnam is, it is a growing economy, a very strong, very vibrant economy and I learnt many lessons there. We tripled the trade volume between Vietnam and Malaysia which I’m hugely proud of. A shift to security and counter-terrorism followed and then eventually I ended up in Bahrain last July, which is actually my first ambassadorship. Do you think diplomacy and how it is conducted has changed throughout your career? It has definitely changed and is now embracing the new environment we live in. With mass media, WhatsApp and other platforms, news travels fast in a matter of seconds. With COVID-19 this has accelerated even further and put us on our toes as we work through an experience that is unprecedented. One major positive of this and the digital revolution to the service is that the younger generation are being enticed to diplomacy as a career and we have seen much more interest from them. What was your mandate when you took the post in Bahrain? Obviously, it was to primarily bolster the union between our two countries which has always shared a close brotherhood between our leaders. The relationship between Malaysia and Bahrain is one both sides treasure.
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