Sarwono says wuphemisms distort communication

JAKARTA (JP): The overuse of euphemisms in the Indonesian language has distorted communication between the government and the people, a minister has said.

State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said on Friday that euphemisms, commonly used to ease troublesome situations, had greatly affected language because people often find it difficult to understand the real meaning of a statement.

"As an indication, we can see how people often use illogical and confusing sentences because they want to cover-up a fact," Sarwono told journalists after inducting new officials at his office.

Experts say euphemisms were initially used to soften or reduce the impact of words, such as the word "protection" instead of "arrest".

Over the years there has been a tendency to overuse them, especially when faced with controversial or "sensitive" subjects. This has given euphemisms a totally different meaning and raised suspicion and distrust of them.

President Soeharto recently said that people should not fish in murky waters after doctors told him to rest last month. He was actually warning people not to use the opportunity to disrupt the government.

"When the quality of communication is improved, the current controversy on the succession issue will not happen," Sarwono said.

Experts said euphemisms are embedded so deeply that many people, even those who pride themselves on being plain spoken, hardly get through a day without using them.

"We often use unclear language, and mislead people on the meaning because it is not straightforwardly stated," said Sarwono.

But Sarwono fell short of providing any remedy to medicate the "ailing language".

"The matter must be handled by related officials, because I am a minister of environment," he said. (prb/aan)