Regard for our language<\/p>\n
The adoption of and adherence to one national language is one
\nof the founding principles of the Republic of Indonesia. Since
\nwell before the declaration of independence, dedicated patriots
\nhave worked tirelessly to spread and improve the use of Bahasa
\nIndonesia, which is one of the corner stones of the unity of the
\nIndonesian people. It seems a tragic irony, therefore, that the
\nIndonesian Real Estate Association refused to respect Indonesia's
\nnational language until it had been asked to do so by no less
\nthan 27 governors and three cabinet ministers. The association's
\nmembers have been asked to change the foreign, mainly English,
\nnames of their real estate developments, notably their housing
\ncomplexes, to Indonesian ones. The same request was made earlier
\nby Jakarta's Governor, Surjadi Soedirdja, but apparently his call
\nfell on deaf ears.<\/p>\n
Disrespect for the national language is not limited to
\nproperty developers. Even government officials have shown a lack
\nof care. But against this troubling backdrop, a prominent
\nproperty tycoon has now announced his readiness to change the
\nEnglish names of his real estate holdings to Indonesian ones. The
\nbusinessman, Ciputra, who owns Indonesia's largest real estate
\ncompany, has stepped forward to set a good example. Owners of
\nother residential estates and commercial centers seem to believe
\nthat the Indonesian language is less prestigious and less
\nattractive to customers than foreign languages. They have named
\ntheir buildings accordingly.<\/p>\n
While such scorn for the national language can also be found
\nelsewhere, real estate developments deserve special attention
\nbecause of the powerful demonstration effect which the foreign
\nnaming of such projects has. In sports the national language has
\nsuffered the same fate, with English-language sports terms being
\nconsidered, for some reason, to be more appropriate than their
\nIndonesian-language equivalents.<\/p>\n
In the realm of government we often hear officials using alien
\nterms such as operasionalisasi\" or pipanisasi. This improper and
\nregrettable conversion of English words with the suffixes \"-tion\"
\nand \"-ation\" is no less than a corruption of the Indonesian
\nlanguage. Because our people are still so used to traditional
\nthinking, ordinary citizens tend to imitate every example given
\nby officials or those whom they believe to be more educated. And
\nso we often come across distorted English expressions, such as
\nZet Pump, Cervice Station or Intirior Decoration, in place of
\n\"jet pump\", \"service station\" and \"interior decoration\".<\/p>\n
The confusion might not have reached its current disturbing
\nlevel if officials were able to refrain from making lengthy,
\ngrammatically incorrect pronouncements in television broadcasts.
\nIronically, many educated members of our society who are used to
\nmaking long statements seem to hate long Indonesian words and
\nphrases. They \"solve\" the problem by haphazardly transforming the
\noffending expressions into acronyms, many of which are then
\ndisplayed in public places. In the 1990s, chaotic language use
\nseems to be a mark social status in Indonesia: the more
\nungrammatical, twisted and incorrect a person's speech is, the
\nmore sophisticated they are taken to be.<\/p>\n
The reigning linguistic anarchy may be partly rooted in our
\npeople's ambition to master a foreign language, especially
\nEnglish. Since few Indonesians can do it well, foreign-language
\nexpressions are mixed with Bahasa Indonesia in a very disorderly
\nmanner.<\/p>\n
Few people seem to understand that the point of mastering a
\nlanguage is not to gain a status symbol, but to acquire a means
\nof communication and, in Indonesia's case, unification.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/regard-for-our-language-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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