Pidgin language

Hasn't the wholesale pidginisasi of the Indonesian language now gone perhaps a little too far? Asosiasi, organisasi, transmigrasi... Now here's one to cap the lot. A well-known five- star hotel located along Jl. Sudirman -- there'll be some spekulasi and ruminasi about this -- has a new parkir system (why not parkirisasi?), and one sign at the entrance says something about "retribusi parkir". Now, if I'm not mistaken, someone's imaginasi has run away with them. "Retribution" means revenge. "Insinuasi", in its usual usage, could lead to violence. Pray tell me: What are they thinking of?

And what are the motor mechanics thinking of when they offer reparasi in their workshops? Reparations, or payments by the losing side in a war (see Treaty of Versailles, rise of the Nazis etc.), would appear to be a million miles from the mind of a car- `owner with a damaged crankshaft. Don't they mean repairs? It's all enough to bring about a fit of exasperasi! Or desparasi?

Virtually every one of these words has a perfectly sound Malay-root alternative, especially a word like "registrasi", which the good people of the University of Indonesia's School of Economics were using at their desk at the same famous five-star hotel recently. What price the reputasi of UI the nasi's best?

Oh, the confusi!

DAVID JARDINE

Jakarta