British Royals visit Malaysia

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate, are now in Malaysia on the second leg of their Diamond Jubilee tour.  Yesterday Kate made her first public address on foreign soil with a two minute speech at Hospis Malaysia.  "Providing children and their families with a place of support, care and enhancement at a time of great need is simply life-changing," she said, in support of a new a new paediatric palliative care programme.  For some recent pictures visit the website of the British Monarchy.





AFP/POOL/MOHD RASFAN

Both nations are constitutional monarchies.  In Malaysia the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is selected for a five-year terms from among the nine Sultans of the Malay states.  Last night William and Kate attended a dinner hosted by Malaysia's King, Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, at his palace.  400 Guests were in attendance.  Queen Elizabeth II last paid a state visit to Malaysia in September 1998.

Today the young couple will visit a Kuala Lumpur city centre park where they will meet local people and enjoy culural performances.  Their day has been slightly spoiled by the release of pictures taken by the French gutter press, during a recent invasion of their privacy at a private Chateau.  It was the gutter press that played a key part in the lead up to the fatal accident that killed William's mother, Princess Diana.

Their next stop is Malaysia's eastern-most state of Sabah where they will spend one night at one of the world's oldest rain forests in Danum Valley before heading off to  the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.