Nine
THE ROTARY STORY
CONTINUES (1992/3-1998)
(cont'd - 7)
Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
In most of the 'match club' pacts, the International Service Committee tries its level best to incorporate a Students' Exchange Scheme into the deal. This scheme allows the mutual exchange of selected teenaged students to each 'match club's country at alternate intervals for a specific period of time, normally for a month's span. Whilst in the foreign land, the students are exposed to a different environment and culture since they are accommodated by foster Rotary parents, attend foreign schools, eat foreign food and learn about foreign customs and habits. A scheme of long standing has been the Ichihara programme which has been in existence since the inception of the 'sister club' project between RCPJ and RC Ichihara. In the period 1993-8, several groups of PJ students including Interactors and limited to eight persons per group at a time, have been given the opportunity to visit Ichihara. In return, the Ichihara club has already sent two student delegations viz. in 1994 and 1996, to Malaysia. It seems amazing that the group of seven in 1994 comprised girls solely while only one thorn was present among the five roses in the batch that came two years later!
RCPJ has also launched the Students' Exchange Programme in conjunction with RC Makati West during this period when the 'sister club' agreement was renewed. Five students from PJ comprised the 'pioneer' batch that went to Manila in October 1994. The same number of Filipino students was given the chance to sample Malaysian hospitality on a return visit to KL two years later. Recently, PJ Club played host to the first Surfers Paradise West Inc. Club's exchange student, M.J. Bedford, when he visited Malaysia for three weeks in April 1998.
Despite the implementation of these new projects with 'sister clubs', it appears that not all PJ Rotarians are happy with the state of affairs subsisting between the Club and the inactive or 'dormant' 'sister clubs'. Opinion is divided concerning the action RCPJ should take: the more outspoken Rotarians insist that the Club should abort relations officially with the inactive 'match clubs' whilst maintaining close ties with the active ones. Others who are less inclined to have a direct confrontation with foreign clubs, feel that PJ Club should play a passive role by just letting the 'dormant' 'sister clubs' die a 'natural death'. Apparently, at the last Club Assembly held in March 1998, general consensus was reached that PJ Rotarians should adopt the latter course of action.
The focus on inter-club issues has not made RCPJ neglect current world events which affect Mankind directly or indirectly due to their serious political or economic undertones. Thus when the genocide of Bosnian Muslims by Serbian military authorities occurred in Bosnia-Herzegovina late in 1993 and continued with greater intensity thereafter, the International Service Committee of 1994/5 embarked on a project which it hoped would bring about greater international understanding and world peace by drawing the attention of Malaysians, young and old, to the plight and suffering of the beleaguered people. It was to be a Mock United Nations (UN) Security Council Session with selected University and College students enacting the role of the 15 member states of the UN Council and participating in a debate on the "Bosnian Crisis". Organised on a joint basis with the UN Association of Malaysia, the project assumed major proportions when it enlisted the support and cooperation of foreign missions and government agencies especially from officials of Wisma Putra. Held at Kompleks Budaya in KL on 13 August 1994, the 'Mock Session' was declared opened and closed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and his Deputy respectively. All the months of hard work and detailed planning of the International Service Committee with the backing of the entire Club were not in vain as the UN project, apart from receiving much acclaim from the mass media, also won the District International Service Award for that year.
With February designated "World Understanding and World Peace Month" in the Rotary International calendar, foreign speakers were invited to address the club at its luncheon meetings during this particular month. These talks were held occasionally in conjunction with the 'International Night' event where Anns were included as mentioned earlier in the text. For February 1995, under the theme "Newly Emerging East European States", the International Service Committee invited the ambassadors of Hungary and Romania and the Charge d'Affaires of the Polish Republic to present their views. Since German Night coincided with the commemoration of Rotary Foundation Day on 23 February 1995, German dignitaries were invited to celebrate the event with PJ Rotarians and their spouses. The Ambassadors of Mexico, Chile and Brazil also addressed the Club in February the following year on topics pertaining to ways to strengthen Malaysian relations with their countries through the 'South-South Cooperation' Treaties.
The charitable aspect of PJ Club, as reflected in the work of the International Service Committee, can be discerned from its numerous financial contributions to the World Community Service programme. As funding towards the maintenance of its "Family Child Care Project", for instance, the Rotary Club of Panchasila Park in Delhi, India, received varying sums ranging from US$1000.00 to Rp.6000.00 from RCPJ between the period 1993-5. Donations were also made to RC Bangkok South's and RC Bangalore's Community Projects when PJ Rotarians visited the two clubs in 1994. Under President Steven Si, PJ Club managed to raise US$1,600.00, which exceeded the 'matching grant' of US$1000.00 pledged to the Rotary International Fund as donations towards the construction of four borewells for pumping drinking water to five villages under the community service programme conducted by RC Bhopal South, India.
Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
