Malai Ahmad Murad bin Syed Mashhor (1943–2004) was a

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

diplomat who became the ambassador to the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

from 1993 to 1996, Japan from 1997 to 2001,

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

from 2001 to 2004, and the high commissioner to Australia from 1996 to 1997.

Education

Malai Ahmad studied at

Al-Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in

Islamic Law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, intan ...

. He then continued his education at

Birmingham University The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

, where he earned a

Diploma in Education The Diploma of Education, often abbreviated to DipEd or GradDipEd, is a postgraduate qualification offered in many Commonwealth countries including Australia, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Overview The diploma can build on the ...

, and he then enrolled in a diplomatic degree at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

Career

Malai Ahmad started working for the government in 1971, first as a lecturer for the Hassanal Bolkiah Arab Secondary School. He succeeded Othman Bidin as

principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

of the Seri Begawan Sultan Teacher Training College in 1975. He moved into the diplomatic sphere in 1981 and served as the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

' Senior Administrative Officer from 1981 to 1984. Before being assigned to positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in

Bandar Seri Begawan Bandar Seri Begawan (BSB) is the capital and largest city of Brunei. It is officially a Municipalities of Brunei, municipal area () with an area of and an estimated population of 100,700 as of 2007. It is part of Brunei–Muara District, the s ...

, he initially served as director of the Political Department before becoming the Director of Administration. He then served as ambassador to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

from 1987 to 1989 and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

from 1984 to 1986. He traveled with

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Hassanal Bolkiah Muiz'zaddin Wad'daulah (born 15 July 1946) is the Sultan of Brunei since 1967, and prime minister of Brunei since its independence from the United Kingdom in 1984. He is one of the few remaining absolute monarchs in the worl ...

in 1987 as part of his entourage. After that, he held ambassadorial posts in Japan from 1997 to 2001, and the Philippines from 1993 to 1996, interlaced with a term serving as the high commissioner in Australia from 1996 to 1997. On 15 August 2001, the Sultan gave him his letters of appointment as ambassador to the United Arab Emirates during a ceremony at the

Istana Nurul Iman The Istana Nurul Iman (Jawi script, Jawi: ايستان نور الإيمان; English language, English: The Light of Faith Palace) is the official residence of the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, and the seat of the Brunei government. Th ...

Death

Malai Ahmad passed away while still in office as ambassador to United Arab Emirates. Adanan Zainal, his successor, was named in April 2004.

Personal life

Malai Ahmad was born in 1943, and he married Rafeah binti Mohd. Yassin.

Honours

He has earned the following honours; National *

Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei The Most Honourable Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei (), also translated as The Most Honourable Order of the Crown of Brunei, is an Order (decoration), order of Brunei, Brunei Darussalam. It was established on 1 March 1954 by Sultan Omar Ali ...

Second Class (DPMB) – ''Dato Paduka'' * Excellent Service Medal (PIKB) * Long Service Medal (PKL; 1996) Foreign * : ** PHL Order of Sikatuna - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross of the

Order of Sikatuna The Order of Sikatuna () is the national order of diplomatic merit of the Republic of the Philippines. It is conferred upon individuals who have rendered exceptional and meritorious services to the Republic of the Philippines, upon diplomats, ...

(GCrS) – ''Datu'' (8 March 1996)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad Murad 1943 births 2004 deaths Bruneian Muslims Bruneian civil servants Ambassadors of Brunei to Japan Ambassadors of Brunei to the United Arab Emirates Ambassadors of Brunei to Saudi Arabia Ambassadors of Brunei to Egypt Ambassadors of Brunei to the Philippines High commissioners of Brunei to Australia Al-Azhar University alumni Alumni of the University of Birmingham Alumni of the University of Oxford