Indonesian proficiency

Reading through Cathy Jones's article on Aug. 22 titled Priceless proposal by govt, I remember the good old colonial days under the Dutch. Westerners invited to an Indonesia dinner refused to touch "native" food and demanded Western food instead.

But the world has since changed. More and more expatriates are trying to master the Indonesian language. To mention a few, the current British Ambassador in Jakarta speaks fluent Indonesian, and Professor Levi from the University of Seattle can conduct an interview in Jakarta in perfect Indonesian. Mrs. Jones seems to be the last of the Mohicans.

It gives me a good laugh. When I wanted to work in the States, I had to pass the TOEFL (English language proficiency) test and I did not feel humiliated.

It is no sin for a country like Indonesia to try to get its language to be recognized as a world language. After all, more than 200 million people already speak Indonesian.

SUMARSONO SASTROWARDOYO Tangerang, Banten