[lg policy] Malaysia: Sarawak just upholding Malaysia Agreement with English policy, state minister says BY SULOK TAWIE

[Harold Schiffman]

Sarawak just upholding Malaysia Agreement with English policy, state
minister says


*BY SULOK TAWIE*

Thursday November 19, 2015
03:59 PM GMT+8







[image: Tan Sri Adenan Satem says Sarawak has adopted English as an
official language of the state administration, apart from Bahasa Malaysia.
― File pic]Tan Sri Adenan Satem says Sarawak has adopted English as an
official language of the state administration, apart from Bahasa Malaysia.
― File picKUCHING, 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.

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.

“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.

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.

“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.

Abang Johari, who is also the state housing minister, said Adenan, had only
been stressing that English is still Sarawak's official language.

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.

“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.

He said there is no need for the private sector to use Bahasa Malaysia when
writing to state government departments.

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.

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.
- See more at:
http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/sarawak-just-upholding-malaysia-agreement-with-english-policy-state-ministe#sthash.zHihN5FV.dpuf


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