Bahasa Indonesia Could Become 2nd Language in ASEAN

CAGAYAN de ORO, KOMPAS.com - An increasing interest in learning Bahasa Indonesia or the Indonesian language among Filipinos seems to give added credence to the idea that it could become the second official medium in ASEAN after English.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Philippines. How are you?" said Philippine Presidential Secretary for Communications , Herminio B Coloma Jr, in perfect Bahasa Indonesia when he opened BIMP-EAGA (Brunei-Indonesia- Malaysia-Philippines/ East Asia Growth Area) media forum in Cagayan de Oro, Mindanao, Southern Philippines, on Monday.

The media forum was organized in parallel with the 16th BIMP-EAGA ministerial level meeting. Coloma, who has ministerial rank in the cabinet, said the Philippine Government considered cooperation in the media and cooperation fields very important to encourage growth in the BIMP-EAGA region.

He said, BIMP-EAGA which was formed in 1994 had lately increasingly led to the emergence of growth centers for the countries involved in it. BIMP-EAGA indeed was a test case for the successful integration of ASEAN.

Meanwhile, Soehardi, information officer at Indonesian consulate general in Davao, Mindanao’s provincial capital, said the consulate was being visited by an increasing number of Filipinos who wanted to learn Bahasa Indonesia.

This was an indication of a growing awareness among Filipinos that if they knew Bahasa Indonesia they could more easily communicate with the native peoples of at least four ASEAN member countries, namely Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand (south).

Bahasa Indonesia which is rooted in the Malay language was also spoken by part of the peoples of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, especially those belonging to the Champa ethnic group.

"Bahasa Indonesia is interesting because it is used by 350 million people in the ASEAN region," said Soehardi, adding that he also was teaching the language in Davao.

The BMIP-EAGA ministerial-level meeting in Cagayan de Oro took place from October 18 to 21. Indonesian coordinating minister Hatta Rajasa was initially scheduled to attend the meeting but could not make it and was eventually represented by one of his senior aides, Raldi Hendro Koestor.