KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s proposal to turn Bahasa Melayu into the Asean grouping’s second official language has become the subject of a heated debate with neighbouring Indonesia.
Recently, Indonesian Education, Culture, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarim had opposed Ismail Sabri’s call, saying that Bahasa Indonesia is more suited for the role taking into account its historical, legal and linguistic “advantages”.
According to National Professors Council (MPN) deputy president Prof Kamaruddin M. Said, the “confusion” on the matter arose when Ismail Sabri used the term Bahasa Melayu in his proposal.
He said Ismail Sabri should have used the term “Bahasa Nusantara”, to denote the languages of the Malay Archipelago instead.
“The effect of switching from (the term) Bahasa Malaysia to Bahasa Melayu has raised confusion. Not many people understand the context of Bahasa Melayu from the Indonesian perspective,” he said in a talk titled Bahasa Melayu-Bahasa Indonesia as an International Language.
“So, when the prime minister said that Bahasa Melayu needs to be Asean’s second language, I believe he meant Bahasa Nusantara, which also includes Bahasa Indonesia with 300 million speakers.
“In Indonesia, Bahasa Melayu means the language spoken in the Riau region. If the prime minister used Bahasa Malaysia-Indonesia, there would surely not be any problem.”
It was aired on MPN’s Facebook page today, as quoted by The Vibes’ sister publication Getaran.
Also present during the hour-long programme were Prof Ari Purbayanto and Prof Aminuddin Aziz of the Indonesian Professors’ Association (API).
Kamaruddin said Indonesian policy recognises that the language spoken in the republic is Bahasa Melayu, but Bahasa Indonesia is the proper term to be used in the country.
He added that Bahasa Indonesia is fast becoming the global choice language for online translations compared to other languages of the Nusantara region.
“But for Bahasa Melayu, the speakers are not as many and not many translations are taking place, so the algorithms are slower.
“I think the language chosen by Google Translate would be the one to spread fast on the global stage. To me, Bahasa Indonesia is the language that is supported by technology.” – The Vibes, April 7, 2022
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