KUALA LUMPUR: Minister of Communications Datuk Fahmi Fadzil extended his congratulations to sign language interpreter, Tan Lee Bee, who was awarded the Bintang Ahli Mangku Negara (AMN) by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, on Monday.
Fahmi also shared a photo with Tan and Deputy Minister of Communications Teo Nie Ching on his Facebook post.
“Met Lee Bee at the Royal Tea Reception in Istana Negara earlier today. May you continue to excel. Thank you for being a ‘silent hero’ who always inspire and enrich our TV screens with full dedication and spirit,“ the post read.
The Royal Tea Reception was a specially arranged event in conjunction with His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia’s Official Birthday.
Tan, 64, was among 16 individuals who received the AMN award at the Federal Awards, Orders, and Medals Investiture Ceremony in conjunction with His Majesty, Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia’s Official Birthday at Istana Negara on Monday.
Bernama had earlier reported that Tan began her work as a sign language interpreter out of love for her hearing-impaired younger sibling. She learned sign language to help her sibling and also served as a teacher for 17 years for the hearing impaired.
Since 1994, Tan has been the first sign language interpreter at the Federal Court of Malaysia, while her involvement in broadcasting began around 1985, through the program Selamat Pagi Malaysia on RTM, and later also became a sign language interpreter for RTM news broadcasts and official communication videos.
