PUTRAJAYA, July 28 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said mastering other languages should not be seen as a pursuit that downgrades the significance of Bahasa Melayu as the national language.

Anwar said ensuring all students master Bahasa Melayu as the language of knowledge remains his government’s priority but he said people must be more open and inclusive to learning other languages as well.

Malaysia, he said, also needs to strengthen English proficiency to stand tall with its international counterparts.

“But, why can’t we give room for our students to master other languages too such as Mandarin, Tamil, French or Russian?

“This does not mean that I am looking down on Bahasa Melayu; I have spent my entire life uplifting it,“ Anwar said at the Education Ministry’s monthly assembly today.

Anwar said his administration has also pushed international schools to place a stronger emphasis on Bahasa Melayu and History, which was previously overlooked in some of these institutions.

Separately, Anwar urged school administrators to report and expose bullying and harassment cases that occur in their schools rather than hiding them merely to protect the reputation of their institutions.

“Whether it is a small incident or big, schools must not be the place for violence and atrocities to start,” he added.