Shia Strength: [MahdiUniteMuslims] Iranians flock to Muslim Malaysia for education, not West

Monday, March 15, 2010

[MahdiUniteMuslims] Iranians flock to Muslim Malaysia for education, not West

Iranians flock to Muslim Malaysia, not West

Low cost, high standards drives migrants East

A number of Iranians are flocking to Malaysia, attracted by a fellow Islamic country with a relatively low cost of living, instead of pursuing their dreams in traditional exile hubs such as Canada or Sweden.

Iranian computer specialist Sina Rahati left his home country for Kuala Lumpur three years ago. He misses neither Tehran's polluted streets nor the bureaucracy needed to set up a new business.

The one thing Rahati really does miss, though, is his favorite breakfast of "kaleh pacheh" -- a fatty traditional Iranian dish made from sheep's head and hooves that most outsiders find utterly inedible.

Wherever they go, the flight of educated Iranians in search of work and study is part of an ongoing "Brain Drain" which is depriving the country of some of its most talented young people.

Rahati, 26, who launched an e-commerce company in Tehran, moved to Malaysia after becoming frustrated with "stressful relations with government organizations that do not welcome a modern business."

"I travelled to a few countries and found Malaysia to be a nice and affordable place to live and study," said Rahati, who is in Kuala Lumpur to pursue a master's degree.

Iran has a large youth population, and has taken measures such as increasing the number of places in domestic universities in a bid to reduce the emigration trend. However, unofficial reports indicate that several hundred thousand undergraduates and graduates are leaving the country each year.

New destinations

The upward direction of this trend has not changed, but the destinations have.

Receiving souvenirs from cousins studying in Ontario or Gothenburg was common in the 1980s and 90s, but among many Iranian families gifts from Kuala Lumpur are now being sent back home.

Malaysia's affordable costs and a high standard of living have made Iranians -- the middle-class in particular -- turn their backs on the West and head East instead.

"As a student you get a wide range of free or cheap services in Malaysia at a relatively excellent level for Asia," said Pooria Asteraky, whose firm helps Iranians wanting to study in Malaysia.

Soaring demand on his introductory iranmalaysia.com website has created a busy office in northern Tehran providing a full package of services for those keen to study in Malaysia.

"In 2003 there were maybe 400 Iranians in Malaysia, but today I suppose they would be between 15,000 and 20,000," said Asteraky, who now lives in Malaysia. Officials put the number of Iranian students in Malaysia at between 3,000 and 4,000 today, saying the figure was only 900 in 2006.

Islamic connection

"After the 9/11 attacks, people from the Middle East feel more secure in Islamic countries," said Asteraky. "They (Malaysians) do not look at you as an alien and they would even give you some privileges because you are a foreigner," he added.

Visa controls at Western airports can be unnerving for Iranians these days, whether they involve fingerprinting or intense questioning, but Iranians visiting loved ones in Malaysia for less than 15 days do not need a visa.

"Easy visa, high educational standards, freedom, low costs of living and great transportation facilities" are among Malaysia's attractions for Iranian students, said Adnan Abas, counsellor at the Malaysian embassy in Tehran.

"Today in the other side of the world there is Islamophobia," Abas added. "The number of visas we issue is increasing."

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2008/08/14/54752.html

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