My friend, Rinalia

It was at the hotel that I saw her. In her late twenties, she looked radiant and expressive, and had flowing curly hair. I was in Bangalore to conduct seminar sessions of OneWorld South Asia for women journalists and she was the sponsor.

At her inaugural address she spoke with such passion about her visit to the villages of Chennai and Pondicherry and how people are using information and communication technologies (ICTs) to better their lives, that I was touched by her conviction and commitment. Clearly, it was not a job that she was doing. It was a passion that she was living.

That was Rinalia Abdul Rahim, the Executive Director of Global Knowledge Partnership, a worldwide network committed to harnessing the potential of information and communication technologies for sustainable and equitable development. She is participating in the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) at Geneva where the world is meeting from December 10 to 12 to take stock of ICT in shaping a better society. Rinalia will be there, speaking at one of the forums, furthering her cause.

We hit it off immediately and discussed life, world citizenship, relationships, Internet and friendships. I asked her about her academic background and she said she did her graduation in political science and masters in public policy. No great shakes. Days later while surfing the web, I discovered that she did the former from Princeton and the latter from Harvard.

In Bangalore, she was quiet, intense and committed. During the course of the two days, we got talking and she told me about her vision to shape empowered communities through knowledge sharing. Born and bred in Malaysia, at a young age she became a part of the National Information Technology Council of Malaysia.

On the second day, I invited her to the happening pub, the Thirteenth Floor. She opened up and told me that the man she is keen to marry is in the US and they hope to get married in December. And that she will be in India again in February 2004 for a parliamentary conference. In that case, I said maybe I could gift her a honeymoon package in Rajasthan, which she must visit.

Today when I read about the Geneva Summit, I am reminded of her. And I trust her personal life is getting sorted and she is soon going to get married. I can’t wait for February to come.

(17th December, 2003)