Australians set example<\/p>\n
At first glance it might seem that there is nothing
\nexceptional about the 10 Australian high school students now
\nvisiting this country. However, their ability to speak Bahasa
\nIndonesia not only fluently, but also flawlessly, makes them
\nspecial. These young people have studied our language in Perth,
\nWestern Australia, with an intensity that few Indonesians would
\nexhibit in the learning of their native tongue.<\/p>\n
Reports from Down Under several years ago said that more
\nand more Australians were learning Indonesia's national language.
\nThe government of Northern Territory has taught it in all schools
\nsince 1990. It is understood that the reason behind the
\nenthusiasm is not only Canberra's ardent desire to boost its
\nrelationship with its large northern neighbor, but also its
\nrespect of our language, which happens to be similar to those
\nspoken in Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and can be understood in
\nSouthern Thailand.<\/p>\n
This reality is encouraging because it means one language can
\nserve as a means to bridge cultures and improve understanding.
\nPerhaps it would even not be too optimistic to say that within
\nthe near future there will be a lot of experts on Indonesian
\nculture in Australia.<\/p>\n
We should not take the current visit by the Australian
\nstudents as a mere gesture of friendship. We should also view it
\nas an inspiring phenomenon which makes us ask ourselves whether
\nwe sincerely respect our own language.<\/p>\n
During the last few years we have heard laments -- especially
\nfrom circles who still strongly believe that Bahasa is one the
\nmost important link in the chain of national unity and the most
\nprecious asset this nation has -- that disrespect towards the
\nnational language has reached alarming proportions.<\/p>\n
The root of this evil might the people's tendency to use the
\nlanguage as a means of self identification. And the more
\ndisastrous still is the notion that Bahasa Indonesia is inferior
\nto western languages. Many people here have a tendency to use the
\nnational language with too little respect towards grammar in
\norder to show their social status. (The more grammatical rules
\nthey violate, the higher the positions they are assumed to hold).
\nThus, many among the new generation of educated people have come
\nto think that the more confusing the mix of English words they
\nuse with Indonesian ones, the more elite they will appear.<\/p>\n
The real purpose of the strange phenomenon might be the urge
\nto practice English just in case one might go abroad someday.
\nWhat they seem to forget is that people who do not have the
\nability to speak their mother tongue properly will never be able
\nto learn a foreign language properly.<\/p>\n
The comic side of this tendency is that many Indonesians do
\nnot know the original English language meaning of isu (rumor), or
\nwhether alternatif (from "alternative") is singular or plural in
\nconcept.<\/p>\n
Another disgusting trend is the belief that it is proper to
\nmix words from a certain local dialect into Bahasa Indonesia
\nsentences because the local culture from which that dialect
\noriginates is considered dominant in this multi-ethnic country.<\/p>\n
And the latest tendency to emerge -- using foreign words with
\nIndonesian prefixes or suffixes -- is further corrupting the
\nproper use of Bahasa Indonesia. A few prime examples are:
\nmengcreate (meaning to create), menghandle (to handle) and
\nmemanage (to manage).<\/p>\n
This constitutes a clear and rude challenge to the call to
\nIndonesians to avoid using foreign-language prefixes and
\nsuffixes, such as "tion" or "ation", made years ago in a forum
\nhosted by experts of the National Language Institute. These
\nforeign-language suffixes have since been corrupted into "asi" in
\nwords such as nationalisasi or privatisasi. We have even heard
\nstate-television and radio newscasters refer to the piping of
\nnatural gas as pipanisasi.<\/p>\n
So the question remains: Who will supervise the use of the
\nnational language? The Language Institute says it is not a
\nlinguistic police agency and at least one expert has asserted
\nthat the development of the national language should be left in
\nthe hands of the users. He points out that, "English took three
\ncenturies to become what it is now."<\/p>\n
That theory might be true, but we wonder whether a people who
\nlack a true sense of nationalism and seem to be suffering from
\ncultural poverty can develop a good and useful language.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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