'Sleeping' policemen<\/p>\n
Mr. D. Chandramouli strikes an enlightening, amusing note
\nabout his first encounter with the Indonesian language in his \"By
\nthe Way\" column in The Jakarta Post of Sunday, Feb. 17.<\/p>\n
There are some points, however, which I think need some
\nadditional attention.<\/p>\n
The first is the Indonesian phrase polisi tidur, or sleeping
\npolicemen. The equivalent in my Longman Dictionary of
\nContemporary English of 1980 describes an \"esp. CarE. as a
\n\"narrow, raised part placed across a road to force traffic to
\nmove more slowly.\"<\/p>\n
The question now arises whether this is an Indonesian phrase
\ntranslated into (Caribbean) English -- or the other way around.<\/p>\n
Second, Mr. Chandramouli said he cannot understand why
\nIndonesian shopkeepers keep saying belum ada, or \"not yet
\navailable,\" when, in fact, they never previously stored or sold a
\nparticular item, and have no intention of doing so in the future.<\/p>\n
Next, he wonders why shopkeepers tell their customers that
\ntheir goods might sometimes be habis (finished) -- as if they
\nwere over stocked, and had just run out.<\/p>\n
In the first instance, the store owners obviously want to give
\nthe impression that, unfortunately, the item in question has yet
\nto be made available. In this respect, they will be only as good
\nas other shops that sell this item.<\/p>\n
In the second, the implication is that customers were just a
\nlittle too late. If only he had arrived a little earlier, he
\nwould have been able to buy the item.<\/p>\n
So, in both cases, the shopkeepers are trying not to
\ndisappoint the customers. These are polite ways of telling the
\ntruth to customers.<\/p>\n
LIE HUA<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sleeping-policemen-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }