From: tsai@tecrus.enet.dec.com (Kuo-Yeang Tsai)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.taiwan
Subject: Re: Language policy (Re: Unification)
Date: 23 Jul 92 22:09:55 GMT
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation


>From: joe@astro.as.utexas.edu (Joe Wang)
>Newsgroups: soc.culture.china,soc.culture.taiwan
>Subject: Re: Language policy (Re: Unification)

>In article <1992Jul22.130548.23712@beaver.cs.washington.edu> chou@cs.washington.edu (Pai Hsiang Chou) writes:
>>What??  What does the number of tones have to do with why
>>they should not be required in school??? 
> 
>[ Mr. Joe Wong's comments about Mandarin and HoLo deleted]

I have never heard anyone advocate the idea that Taiwan should abolish 
Mandarin as the official common language.

As far as Taiwan's language policy is concerned, the outcry has always been
that the policy should not suppress any language that had been used for so
many years before Mandarin was introduced to Taiwan. 

The damages that have done to the languages and culture, and the psychological
wounds that are inflicted upon those whose mothertongues are not Mandarin,
especially HoLo, are quite immense.

Three years ago when I was still in school, a nice girl from Taiwan said to me
"Did you speak HoLo most of the time? I said "Yes!". She replied "Me2-Shwe2-
Jwun3" (No class). Since we knew each other quite well and usually carried
conversation in a casual non-diplomatic manner, I said "You guy saying Mandarin
dirty words are quite high class, and we read Tong2 poems in HoLo are really no
class". She blushed.

I have a young (undergraduate) acquaintance here at Boston who understands 
HoLo but doesn't speak. Her elder sister told me once that her sister hardly
talks to her grandmother because of the language barrier.

Whenever I heard this kind of story, my heart ached.


My random reflection on this language policy matter:

1. I have no objection in adopting any languages as official languages, be them
   my mothertongue or not.

2. The 'promoting Mandarin movement" might have good intention, yet it was
   not properly implemented. It overdid it and still does.

3. Kids have tremendous capacity in learning more than one language, why
   deprive them of this precious opportunity when they can almost effortlessly
   acquire that ability?

After all those laws and executive orders set up to regulate what language 
people should use, the "Mandarin promoting comittee" was pushing a law to be
passed in LY in 1985 to regulate what people should write. This may sound
ridiculous to you, yet Taiwan just has the 'luck' to be put through all of
these. Fortunately enough, many professor are also writers and this new law
apparently drew their attention. They voiced their concern and the ruling party
was divided on this matter. The law thus failed on the ground to be passed at
LY. I am not sure this "Mandarin promoting comittee" is still existent or not
now.

To Mr. Joe Wong:

I admire your enthusiasm for the China affairs and some of your arguments are
valid. However, Taiwan, during the past 4 decades, has gone through so much 
twisted values injection and it needs time to right the wrongs, undo the 
distortion, and demystify the myths. I believe it is not the right time to
promulgate the idea of unification, albeit you have the right and legitimate
reasons to do so now. Taiwan needs to be let alone for a period of time to
develop its democratic system and culture. I am not saying Taiwan should close
its door to China, rahter China should give Taiwan some breathing space since 
China has more chips on the table as far as  politica goes. If you can spend 
your efforts on China and the Chinese people in helping them develop their 
economy and democratic system, that will be much more productive and progmatic
than convincing the Taiwanese people. 

Assume that unity is good, yet can unity be achieved only by uniformity?

kyt
Newsgroups: soc.culture.taiwan