YOURSAY | More culture wars – this time, it’s DBP on language

YOURSAY | ‘I think it is far better to reward the use of BM rather than punishment.’

DBP Act amendments: ‘Don’t just look at punishment for language offenders’

Vijay47: As right as rain and as surely as the sun rises in the East, the response from Dewan Bahasa Pustaka (DBP) chairperson Awang Sariyan is exactly in accordance with established protocol and in line with what the doctor ordered – “My statement at the earlier press conference was taken out of context.”

It appears that he forgot to add that other traditional spice – “I was misquoted”.

Sadly, however one slices it, someone carrying the title of professor these days hardly attracts the admiration of yore. The professorial specimens we encounter of late only serve to make hair stand, knees tremble, and blood curdle. But I digress, of course.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, I am sure the world of scholastic pursuit and linguistic excellence eagerly awaits your useful definition of what constitutes “disrespect to the national language”.

How is such disrespect achieved? The written word or the spoken as in the case of we mere mortals attempting ‘England’ as a form of verbal communication?

What is accepted pronunciation? Would I be charged, flogged and flayed like Gunga Din if I said “Nok gi ‘Antau Pa’jeng beki ketou”?

In the interest of brevity, I shall not enquire how you arrived at the magic sum of RM50,000 as an appropriate fine; I believe the current amount in vogue is RM30,000 or RM480,000.

Coward: DBP, please don't blame the messenger. The media focused on the penalty aspect because this is what the public is interested in. You should have anticipated this. The onus is on you to make sure the message was not conveyed that way.

And guess what? You did not help the matter by saying more enforcement is needed in your latest interview.

And why are we focused on enforcement? This is because of its compulsive nature and its potential for abuse. It is also the part of the Dewan Bahasa and Pustaka (DBP) Act that had the most direct impact on us. As such, how can you blame us and the media for focusing on this?

You also failed to take both opportunities to promote the other aspects of your work you want the media to focus on. This is particularly bad messaging on your part. Don't blame the media.

Newday: Awang, you already said your piece the other day to the government news outlet (Bernama). Indeed, what ‘holistic approach’ when you waved the potential big stick to those that you subjectively view as being unpatriotic and having no love for Malaysia?

It is language, not terrorism, DBP - how about spending your time educating our very own language writers to write Bahasa Malaysia grammatically correct? Quality has deteriorated significantly. Educate the advertising hoarding writers - there are some real shockers out there.

Educate us, not punish us.

JazliSalleh: DBP has a lot to learn. They should emulate the Indonesians. Look at how they have developed their language.

DBP has been an abject failure in the eyes of the rakyat. The reason why the national language has not been well received by the rakyat today is because of the failure on the part of the DBP.

Have they been proactive enough to translate books, journals, research materials and articles efficiently? The simple answer is no. This is a fact and nobody can deny it.

Instead of developing the national language and making it more user-friendly and well received by the rakyat, they are more focused on taking action and punishing the rakyat. All this is to cover up their own failures.

Cynic: Forcing something down people's throats, be it language or other things, would certainly put people off.

DBP's job is to enhance the language, not by force but by skill. Instilling love needs a lot of patience, and a lot more skill. Does the DBP have it in them to do so?

The rakyat certainly would not like to see language police running rampant, like our moral police, in enforcing a love for the Malay language.

I am proficient in four languages - Bahasa Melayu, English, Tamil and Mandarin. I learned those languages because of my desire to learn those languages; nobody forced them on me.

Safefail: If there is a high risk of getting severely fined for unintentional errors/mistakes when using BM, going forward many would just avoid using BM at all.

Instead, they would use English, Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Iban or any other languages in the world.

You are sure that you would not be wronged, let alone punished if you lack proficiency in these non-BM languages.

GrayPuffin9604: I think it is far better to reward the use of BM rather than punishment. If government pay RM1 each time people speak or write in BM, no one will speak other languages but BM.

Falcon: After over 65 years, are we still waging war against all and sundry, especially the minorities, at every opportunity to entrench claims of superiority?

After 65 years, what are we showing to the world? After 65 years, a nation divided by polarisation, race and religion? After 65 years, an obsession to command and control minorities’ way of life, religion and culture?

After 65 years, a nation where both capital flight and brain drain continue unabated? After 65 years, a nation unable to acknowledge the need to reward meritocracy, academic brilliance and professionalism?

After 65 years, where a citizen asks if they are loved over new arrivals from failed states? After 65 years, where high-handed corruption, abuse and lack of accountability impact development but there lacks political will for change?

After 65 years, where questions are raised about whether we are now truly both a rogue and failed state? After 65 years, where it dawns looking at where we are to others in the region, even Asean, and realise how dark our world has become?

Our founding fathers, if alive today, would be shocked, hurt and torn at what the nation has become, once a jewel of moderation, values and progressive thought, now a plain shadow of what it once was.

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