<div dir="ltr"><br clear="all"><h1 style="font-size:40px;line-height:40px;margin-bottom:20px;margin-top:20px;font-weight:bold">Malay can be world language, <br>says Brunei lecturer </h1>
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Rabiatul Kamit, The Brunei Times/ANN, Bandar Seri Begawan | World | Tue, January 14 2014, 10:30 AM </div>
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</div><p>Malay has the potential to become a world
language spoken alongside English, Spanish and German, said a
Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) lecturer yesterday.</p><p>According
to Aini Hj Karim, Malay has expanded rapidly as a language spoken by
over 250 million people as a national language in Malaysia, Indonesia,
Brunei and Singapore as well as by minorities in places such as Sri
Lanka and Cocos Islands.</p><p>“Malay can be elevated to a higher status
as a widely-spoken language in Asean, comparable to other major
languages,” she said in her paper delivered at the Culture and Language
Seminar on campus yesterday.</p><p>The lecturer believed that
responsibility of advocating the Malay language belongs to native
speakers, urging them to promote Malay through language planning.</p><p>She explained that if more native speakers use Malay, the language will become more important in Asean and the world.</p><p>“The issue now is whether or not we are willing to advocate Malay. It is up to us to promote the language,” said Aini.</p>
<p>Those involved in language and education system planning play a vital role in advocating Malay, she added.</p><p>However,
noted Aini, “the Malay language and education system policies in Brunei
differ to that of other Asean members whereby the Language and
Literature Bureau comes under the purview of the Ministry of Culture,
Youth and Sports, while the education system is handled by the Ministry
of Education.</p><p>“Thus, the language policy entrusted to the Language
and Literature Bureau is not in line with the education policy. The
question is how do we streamline this scenario? Therein lies the
problem,” commented the lecturer.</p><p>Aini reiterated that the success
of a country’s language policy is closely related to its education
policy, where it is the official language or used as the main medium in
schools.</p><p>“This is the challenge and reality that the Malay
language in Brunei must face. Perhaps many in Brunei’s own society do
not realise this,” she said, alluding to the growing popularity of
English as a second language in the nation.</p><p>The all-day seminar, themed “Strengthening Ties Via Culture and Language”, took place at the Senate Room of the Chancellor Hall.</p><p>Conducted
by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, UBD, in collaboration with
the Faculty of Language and Arts, Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Indonesia,
the seminar served as a platform for members of both institutions to
exchange knowledge pertaining to development of social sciences in the
region.</p><p>A total of 20 papers were presented, covering various topics on language, culture and arts as well as education.</p><p><a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/01/14/malay-can-be-world-language-says-brunei-lecturer.html">http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/01/14/malay-can-be-world-language-says-brunei-lecturer.html</a><br>
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