Chinese media are beginning to assert itself
Harry Bhaskara, The Jakarta Post, Beijing
This is the sixth article in a series based on a visit by six Indonesian journalists, including one from The Jakarta Post, to China courtesy of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of China.
Translation is always a treason, and as a Ming author observes, can at its best be only the reverse side of a brocade -- all the threads are there, but not the subtlety of color or design." Okakura,The Book of Tea
A lot of time has been wasted in the translation of Chinese into English during this visit. Interviews were virtually cut in half to allow time for translation, bringing down the number of questions that were asked. Time was frozen each time a source spoke in his or her vernacular. In addition to the exasperation, the intermittent breaks rendered the conversations unnatural.
More could have been accomplished had the Chinese officials we met were well-versed in English and/or the Indonesian interviewers like us could speak Chinese (Mandarin).
The question is, should the officials learn English or should the visitors learn Chinese. For Indonesians, both languages are difficult to master, but many might agree that Chinese is a more difficult language because in addition to its several thousand Chinese characters and rich vocabulary, it is also a tonal language. An incorrect tone applied to a word can change its meaning.
Whatever direction is taken, it will take time, but the silver lining is, more and more Indonesians are learning the Chinese language.
"In Beijing, Xiamen and Guanzhou, there are hundreds of Indonesian students learning Chinese," said Xie Yinghua of China Radio International (CRI), Indonesian Service.
With the 2008 Olympics on the horizon, Beijing has a huge task to equip its officials and relevant personnel with a mastery of English. From our short trip we learned that stewardesses, hotel staff, money changers, shop attendants, bus and taxi drivers spoke very little English.
For now, when most Indonesians and Chinese still have to resort to a third language to communicate, the greater portion of news about China will have to be rely upon the international media, including the Chinese media.
How is the state of the media in China today?
"Now it is very good. The government has encouraged the media to be critical, so that it can rectify any shortages," said Kang Bing who is deputy editor of China Daily.
The daily which was founded in 1981 has a circulation of 150,000 and 700 staff, one third of them in the editorial section.
Kang said some 20 years ago, one needed to obtain a permit from the relevant government officials to publish a news story about a fatal accident.
So, what sort of news can the paper report?
"We can publish something critical about the U.S. imperialists, or Indonesia, or a new highway being built, a new damn or a railway," he said.
Kang said most media in China belonged to the government but some were joint ventures with private firms.
Dongmei Wang, CRI deputy president, said that the way the radio presented news had changed.
"China began to change in 1978 when it adopted an open market policy," Wang said.
Prior to 1978, she said, home news was mostly based on Xinhua, the state news agency.
"Then, the views of Xinhua were also the views of the public," Wang said.
Today, she said, the press is more open and has made tremendous strides.
"News sources are more varied, national level media send their reporters to many places in the world and write news based on their own views," Wang said.
Asked how important CRI viewed Indonesia, Wang said, it was the same as other Southeast Asian countries.
"Our Indonesian broadcast also has its own website. It is informative and up-to-date," she said.
CRI has been broadcasting news in Indonesia from Beijing for 54 years as it was established in 1950, a year after the People's Republic of China was established.
With a staff o 1,600 people, CRI operates 24 hours per day and has services in 38 languages with journalists working in more than 20 countries. Its news is accessible on its website cri.com.cn.
CRI is interested in news about tourism in Indonesia, said Wang, and also news about Chinese-Indonesians and on how the Indonesian media presents news about China.
"We have very limited news sources from Indonesia since we don't have journalists there," Wang said.
However, there are plans to open an office in Indonesia in the future, she said.