Riau wants new nat'l hero named

PEKANBARU, Riau: Five factions at the Riau legislative council agreed on Monday to propose that Raja Ali Haji be declared a national hero by the central government for his role in promoting Riau Malay as an Indonesian language.

The proposal was also supported by the special committee in the council.

Senior councillors stated during a plenary meeting that the proposal warranted a positive response, because Raja Ali Haji's monumental work in the field of Indonesian linguistics had been hailed by domestic and foreign experts. --Antara