<div dir="ltr"><div style="" id="stcpDiv"><div class="" style="margin-left:220px;margin-bottom:30px"><h2 class="" style="border:medium none">Sarawak just upholding Malaysia Agreement with English policy, state minister says</h2>
<p class="" style="font-size:16px"><strong>BY SULOK TAWIE<br></strong> </p>
</div>
<div class="" style="margin-top: -10px;">
<p style="border-top:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-top:10px;padding-bottom:10px;font-size:12px"><span class="">Thursday November 19, 2015<br>03:59 PM GMT+8</span></p>
<div class="">
<div class=""><h3 class=""><br></h3></div>
<p style="margin-bottom:30px"><br></p><br><p style="margin-bottom:30px"><br></p>
</div>
<div class="">
<div class="">
<div class=""><h3 class=""><br></h3></div>
<div class="">
<div class="">
<div id="div-gpt-ad-1372880913597-16" style="width:160px;height:600px">
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="" style="width:620px;margin-right:0px;padding-left:39px">
<div class="">
<div class="">
<span class=""><span style="text-decoration:none;color:rgb(0,0,0);display:inline-block;margin:3px 3px 0px;padding:0px;font-size:11px;line-height:0px;vertical-align:bottom;overflow:visible"><div class=""><span style="vertical-align:bottom;width:49px;height:61px"></span></div></span></span> <span class=""></span></div>
</div>
<p>
<span class="" style="float:left;width:620px"><img alt="Tan Sri Adenan Satem says Sarawak has adopted English as an official language of the state administration, apart from Bahasa Malaysia. ― File pic" src="http://www.themalaymailonline.com/images/sized/ez/adenan_satem_0309a_620_413_100.jpg" style="float: left;" height="413" width="620"><span class="">Tan
Sri Adenan Satem says Sarawak has adopted English as an official
language of the state administration, apart from Bahasa Malaysia. ― File
pic</span></span>KUCHING, Nov 19 ― A Sarawak minister said today that
the state government was merely upholding its right under the Malaysia
Agreement 1963 by using English as the official language of the
administration.</p>
<p>
He said the agreement, signed by Sarawak, Malaya, Sabah and Singapore
upon the formation of Federation of Malaysia in 1963, allows the state
to retain English as the official language.</p>
<p>
“Therefore, English is still our official language,” he said when
elaborating on Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem’s statement on the
matter yesterday during a state civil service gathering.</p>
<p>
Abang Johari added that although the Sarawak legislative assembly never
endorsed the National Language Act 1967, Sarawak still accepts Bahasa
Malaysia as its official language.</p>
<p>
“MA63, therefore, allows us to have both English and Bahasa Malaysia as
the official languages so let the status quo be maintained,” he told
reporters after opening a seminar here, referring to the Malaysia
Agreement by its abbreviation.</p>
<p>
Abang Johari, who is also the state housing minister, said Adenan, had
only been stressing that English is still Sarawak's official language.</p>
<p>
He said the chief minister was just updating the public and the private
sector on the Malaysia Agreement and the status of English as the
state’s working language.</p>
<p>
“Many people from the private sector are unaware of this position so
they use Bahasa Malaysia in their letters to the government,” he said,
adding that many state civil servants are also ignorant of this
position.</p>
<p>
He said there is no need for the private sector to use Bahasa Malaysia when writing to state government departments.</p>
<p>
At the gathering yesterday, Adenan had said Sarawak has adopted English
as an official language of the state administration, apart from Bahasa
Malaysia, and that official government correspondence could be in both
languages.</p>
<p>
The chief minister said it was a practical and logical step, and that
the use of English is necessary and unavoidable as it is a universal
language and the language of science and technology.</p></div> - See
more at:
<a href="http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/sarawak-just-upholding-malaysia-agreement-with-english-policy-state-ministe#sthash.zHihN5FV.dpuf">http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/sarawak-just-upholding-malaysia-agreement-with-english-policy-state-ministe#sthash.zHihN5FV.dpuf</a></div><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/" target="_blank">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
</div>