It’s vital for diplomats to be able to speak local vernacular

 

From Dennis Ignatius

Teresa Kok must be getting desperate for issues to attack the government.

Taking the prime minister to task for his misguided policy to push the use of the Malay language abroad is one thing, but sneering at much-needed language training for our diplomats is quite another.

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It should be obvious that the ability to speak in the local vernacular is an asset for any diplomat.

Without it, a diplomat cannot effectively do his job in defending and promoting his country’s policies as well as understanding the local environment.

It is for this reason that foreign services across the globe put much resources into language training.

The United States foreign service, for example, has a School of Language Studies solely to assist its diplomats acquire appropriate language skills before taking up their assignments abroad.

It is one of the reasons why the current US ambassador to Malaysia is so well-versed in the Malay language.

If anything, the government needs to dedicate more resources to language training for our diplomats.

I would have thought that the Seputeh MP would be supportive of efforts to improve the professionalism of our foreign service.

If incentive allowances are not appropriate, other ways need to be found to enhance the language proficiency of our officers.

Needlessly attacking them or accusing them of being “mollycoddled” is unhelpful.

And yes, our diplomats do need to brush up on their English language skills but that does not mean that other languages like Mandarin, French, Spanish, etc are not important.

Our nation is facing many critical challenges including massive corruption, abuse of power and racial and religious extremism.

That ought to give our MPs plenty to focus on; picking on foreign service officers who need help and support in carrying out their duties is a cheap shot unbecoming of an experienced MP and former minister. - FMT

Dennis Ignatius is a former ambassador.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.