[lg policy] bibitem: CONTINUING RESISTANCE: CRITICISMS OF THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL LANGUAGE POLICY

[Harold Schiffman]

UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES DILIMAN

CONTINUING RESISTANCE:CRITICISMS OF THE PHILIPPINE NATIONALLANGUAGE POLICY


I. Introduction

Criticisms of the national language policy of the Philippines began
during the drafting of the1935 Constitution of the Philippines and
still opposition continues to this day. What makes the arguments from
the opposition interesting is that they question the assumptions of
the policy makers, leaders and the general population regarding issues
of Filipino nationalism and identity. The question of language and
nationalism in the Philippines we find out is more than a cultural
one, but as the early criticisms and the ongoing criticisms would
show, actually is a political one as well. The most well-formed
arguments against the national language come from two sides. The first
we may label as the non-essentialist/utilitarian side which says that
the correspondence between language and national identity is an
exaggeration, that the essence of a person can be expressed in
whatsoever language he or she uses. The second is from the
regionalistic perspective, a much-maligned point of view among
nationalist narratives. There is a continuing sense of marginalization
that is felt by the various ethnolinguistic groups across the
Philippines due to the perception of the elevation of one language
among the numerous ones in the archipelago to the status of a national
language. Though to a certain extent still essentialist, in that the
advocates of the regionalistic point of view stress the importance of
their ethnolinguistic identities, the feelings of marginalization
still lingers and provides a major inspiration for serious criticisms
of the national language policy which was and is still being seen as
an imposition. To open new avenues regarding the issue, therefore,
more than to rehash the old arguments,a new political consciousness
must be realized. This is manifested by calls for changes in the
prevailing Manila-centric political structure of the country, towards
a more egalitarian orientation in the form of a federal decentralized
government.

More at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/52744158/CONTINUING-RESISTANCE-CRITICISMS-OF-THE-PHILIPPINE-NATIONAL-LANGUAGE-POLICY-by-Rufus-Montecalvo

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