Speak up! Speak up!

Borneo Post

a day ago

The ability of speaking more than one language is a valuable personal asset. — Photo from pexels.com/ICSA
I HAVE great admiration for anyone who speaks another language besides his own mother tongue.
A friend of mine, an Iban, who sadly had joined his Maker, spoke fluent Mandarin and several other Chinese dialects and also the Sarawak Malay.
He also spoke Melanau (the Bintulu variety).
There was never a dull moment to be in his company.
During a happy occasion such as a wedding reception, someone who proposes a toast laced with good humour in two or more languages can turn a solemn situation into one full of laughter.
Even during semi-formal discussions like seminars and workshops, it is always interesting to listen to speakers switching from one language to another at will, and yet, can still be fully understood by everybody else in the room.
It's a very effective way of disseminating information, especially where the audience consists of people from various educational backgrounds.
A language is only useful when, through it, the message is crystal clear – no ambiguity.
If two or three languages could convey the same message, so much the better.
An audience consisting of various ethnic groups of individuals with varying standards of literacy would greatly benefit from this sort of situation.
Malaysians must appreciate the fact that they are allowed to be multilingual.
At one stage in the history of Malaysia, there was an attempt to discourage the publication of literature written in Iban, or any other indigenous Borneo languages.
The federal government policy then was that every Malaysian must speak Bahasa Malaysia and write in Bahasa Malaysia only.
Over time, it was realised that this strict application of the language policy could not work in a multiracial society like Malaysia.
I could have told them that!
The unity of a nation does not depend solely on one national language.
Switzerland has four national languages: French, German, Italian and Romansch.
Politically, it is one of the most stable countries in the world and certainly, one of the richest in Europe.
Please note carefully that I am not proposing for Malaysia to have four national languages.
Not at all.
Let the Malay Language remain our 'Bahasa Kebangsaan' (national language) and every Malaysian must continue learning, speaking and writing in it.
And let the other languages of the various ethnic groups making up the population of Malaysia be used on a daily basis without hindrance, as is the position now.
For the past 30 years, the structure of that language policy has been somewhat relaxed.
It is what public policy should be if a multiracial society like ours is to sustain itself.
It is hoped that this attitude will be maintained by the government of the day for as long as possible.
Whichever political party in power in the country, let the language policy continue to be liberal.
Yesterday, someone drew my attention to a report in The Borneo Post of June 22, 2025.
It was about a public-speaking competition organised by the Sibu Chapter of the Federation of Sarawak Chinese Independent Secondary Schools for the students from 14 Chinese independent schools in the state.
I salute whoever conceived the idea of a public-speaking competition in three languages: Mandarin, Malay and English.
What a great idea! We are on the same page.
I hope that one day, there would be a competition of this nature in the future: the use of the Iban language or any of the indigenous languages in Sarawak.
The organisers of trilingual competitions, please bear that in mind. First, learn one of the languages.
It is high time we actively learn each other's language.
I wish someone would start a school or classes in the native languages.
The Iban language is already a subject taught in a university in Malaysia, but other indigenous languages are not.
Think about possibilities.
The importance of a language is not confined to communication between individuals, but it is also crucial to racial understanding and racial harmony.
The loss of the language means the loss of the culture of the speakers of that language and, with it, racial identity.
Ask the Hawaiians what they feel about losing their language.
They used to have their own language, but after English was made the main language of the islands and the lingua franca for daily communication, the use of the indigenous language began to wane.
Eventually, generations of Hawaiians did not use their mother tongue on a daily basis and the language slowly died out of lack of regular use.
For the past 50 years, some young Hawaiians have been trying to revive interest in the language.
I do not know what the status is now. My source, a native Hawaiian introduced to me by Dr Yusuf Hannifah in Honolulu in 1971 and became my regular correspondent for years, had passed away.
End of personal communication. The latest I heard about the interest in reviving the Hawaiian language was when I read about a group of musicians from Hawaii who came to perform at the Rainforest World Music Festival in Santubong.
In a press release, they meant to showcase, through their performances, their depictions of the traditional culture in their own ancestral knowledge in their language (The Borneo Post – June 22, 2025).
The sound of music and the lyric of the song can be an excellent medium of communication.
For example, the famous song 'Bekikis Bulu Betis' composed by Penghulu Andrewson Ngalai of Sibu, has been sung by the non-Ibans in every conceivable occasion.
It is such an excellent medium for the propagation of the Iban language.
Back on the 'kulaiwi' artistes. They highlighted their work as part of 'a larger cultural movement to revive Hawaiian language and tradition'.
Note the revival of interest in the Hawaiian language and see the importance of the human tongue for the sustainability of human civilisation.
* The opinions expressed in this article are the columnist's own and do not reflect the view of the newspaper. Iban language Melanau native sarawak