Rais Yatim

Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri Dr. Rais Yatim
Minister for Information, Communication and Culture
In office 10 April 2009 – 5 May 2013
Monarch	Abdul Halim Mizan Zainal Abidin
Prime Minister	Najib Razak
Deputy	Joseph Salang Gandum Heng Seai Kie
Preceded by	Ahmad Shabery Cheek (Minister for Information) Shafie Apdal (Minister for Culture, Arts and Heritage)
Succeeded by	Ahmad Shabery Cheek (Communication and Multimedia) Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz (Tourism and Culture)
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office 19 March 2008 – 9 April 2009
Monarch	Mizan Zainal Abidin
Prime Minister	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Deputy	Abdul Rahim Bakri
Preceded by	Syed Hamid Albar
Succeeded by	Anifah Aman
Minister for Culture, Arts and Heritage
In office March 2004 – March 2008
Monarch	Mizan Zainal Abidin Sirajuddin
Prime Minister	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Preceded by	position established
Succeeded by	Shafie Apdal (Minister for National Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage)
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office 1986–1987
Monarch	Iskandar
Prime Minister	Mahathir Mohamed
Preceded by	Ahmad Rithauddeen Ismail
Succeeded by	Abu Hassan Omar
Member of Parliament for Jelebu
In office 1999–2013
Preceded by	Yunus Rahmat
Succeeded by	Zainuddin Ismail
In office 1982–1990
Preceded by	Abdul Samad Idris
Succeeded by	Ibrahim Sareh
In office 1974–1978
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Abdul Samad Idris
President of International Islamic University Malaysia
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 June 2013
Chancellor	Sultan Ahmad Shah
Preceded by	Mohd. Sidek Hassan
Personal details
Born	(1942-04-15) 15 April 1942 Kampung Gagu, Jelebu, Negeri Sembilan, British Malaya (now Malaysia)
Political party	United Malays National Organisation Barisan Nasional
Spouse(s)	Masnah Rais
Children	4
Residence	Ampang Jaya, Kuala Lumpur
Alma mater	University of Singapore (1973) King's College London (1994)
Occupation	Politician, lawyer
Religion	Sunni Islam

Tan Sri Dr. Rais Yatim (born 15 April 1942) is a Malaysian politician. He was a minister in multiple federal governments from 1974 to 2013 and the Chief Minister of Negeri Sembilan from 1978–1982. He held the Jelebu seat in the Parliament of Malaysia until 2013. He was a member of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the leading party in Malaysia's ruling Barisan Nasional coalition, except for a period in the 1990s when he was a member of the opposition Semangat 46.

After leaving politics he became the President of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM).

Early life and education

Rais was born to a Minangkabau family. A lawyer by profession, he graduated from Language Institute (also known as Language Teaching College), Kuala Lumpur in 1964. In 1968, he taught Bahasa Malaysia to the American Peace Corps in the United States. He obtained his honours degree from National University of Singapore. In 1994, he obtained a PhD from King's College London. His doctoral dissertation was eventually published in 1995 as Freedom Under Executive Power in Malaysia: A Study of Executive Supremacy.

Political career

Rais has held various positions in the national cabinet and other state government positions. He had been appointed a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Menteri Besar of Negeri Sembilan (1978–1982), Minister of Land and Regional Development (1982–1984), Minister of Information (1984–1986) and Foreign Minister (1986–1987).

When he fell out of favour of the UMNO leadership in April 1987, he resumed his law career. He worked with a firm, Ram, Rais & Partner, from 1987 to 1999. During the 1990s he became the deputy leader of the opposition Semangat 46, a breakaway party led by UMNO members dissatisfied with Mahathir Mohamad's leadership. Like most Semangat 46 leaders, he rejoined UMNO by the end of the decade. Upon his return to the ministry in 1999, as Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, he was effusive in his praise for Mahathir, who had outlasted the Semangat 46 movement with successive election victories. He held the ministry until the 2004 election, after which Abdullah Badawi, who had replaced Mahathir on his retirement, appointed him as Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage.

In June 2007, Rais was nominated as a candidate for the post of the next Commonwealth Secretary-General after Don McKinnon's term in office ended in March 2008. However, he pulled out on 26 July, citing the lateness of campaigning, and his duties and commitments as the Main Committee of the upcoming 50th Merdeka celebrations, which limited him from travelling out of the country to lobby for his candidacy.

Rais served another term as Foreign Minister from 18 March 2008 until 9 April 2009, when the incoming Prime Minister Najib Razak appointed him as the Minister for Information, Communications and Culture. He remained in that ministry until the 2013 election, when he was dropped as a parliamentary candidate. Speaking generally about Barisan Nasional's decision to drop a number of senior figures from its parliamentary lineup, Najib stated that it was to "satisfy the demands of voters who want to see Barisan Nasional and UMNO change and reform". Rais accepted the decision and called on fellow UMNO members to remain loyal to the party. Within a few months he was appointed as the President of the International Islamic University of Malaysia.

Personal life

He is married to Masnah Rais and has four children. His hobbies are photography and travelling. He is also a writer on the subjects of law, politics, and Malay society.

External links

• Rais Yatim on Facebook
• Rais Yatim on Twitter