Interview: Ease of travel boosts Malaysia-China people-to-people ties: expert

Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama Chairman Wong Chun Wai speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sept. 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Cheng Yiheng)
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) — A modern and seamless system to welcome travelers combined with favorable policies including visa free travel for Malaysians entering China are boosting people-to-people ties between the two nations by enabling increased tourism and interactions, a Malaysian expert has said.
Having traveled to China extensively especially in 2024 in conjunction with official duties related to the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China as well as in his personal capacity, Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama Chairman Wong Chun Wai told Xinhua in a recent interview.
Wong said that free travel to China was impressive, and it was easy to find steps taken by Chinese authorities in welcoming travelers, from automatic entry gates at airports which relay instructions in different languages to the welcoming attitude of local officials.
He was amazed by the service at the immigration. “I can’t speak Chinese. You don’t even need to speak Chinese because you put your passport on the machine and they know you’re from Malaysia, and the voice from the machine says ‘Welcome to China’ in Bahasa Malaysia,” he said.
Wong also spoke highly of China’s railway transport infrastructure, which allowed easy rapid travel from Hangzhou to Shanghai via high speed railway.
“I wish that the world could see more of this technology advance in transportation which is carried out by China … the advancement of technology in transport is really amazing for me. That to me is number one thing that hits me the most every time I go to China,” he said.
“I will say that, China’s biggest eye opener for me is the transformation of the railway network. The railway network is really, really amazing. I think it’s the most extensive in the world in terms of high-speed railway,” he said.
On the significance of the 50th anniversary milestone, Wong said that while a lot have already been accomplished, there is even more to look forward to going forward particularly in economic cooperation as the nature of Malaysia and indeed the whole Southeast Asian region is undergoing a rapid transformation, buoyed by China’s economic success.
“While Malaysia is small, but we have a big middle-class market. That means there’s good purchasing power. So, it’s really good that (Chinese automaker) Geely and Proton have come together to work in Malaysia,” he said.
“It’s not just for the Malaysian market but to use it as a leaping hub to send to other countries. But I would really love to see Malaysia and China working together more on technology, and also transportation, I’d say, because there’s so much to learn from China in terms of technological advancement,” he added.
For the upcoming China’s National Day, Wong gave his best wishes. “On behalf of Bernama, the Malaysian national news agency, I wish the people of China, the government of China, every success and prosperity in the years to come,” he said, hoping that Malaysia and China could go further in terms of people-to-people friendship. ■

Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama Chairman Wong Chun Wai speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sept. 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Cheng Yiheng)