Pine (second left) presents a memento to Fatimah. Also seen are Izak Human (left) and Dorge (third right).
KUCHING: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) is embarking on the documentation of Melanau Dalat to complement the government’s continued efforts in nurturing and preserving the language and culture of the various ethnic groups.
Prior to this, DBP has published a couple of dictionaries on ethnic languages including Selako and Kelabit, said Minister of Welfare, Women and Family Development Datuk Fatimah Abdullah.
“DBP is also under my watching brief. We are keen to ensure all languages especially of the minorities are not lost along the way. Through publishing dictionaries, we can ensure ethnical languages in Sarawak are properly documented for future references,” she told journalists after receiving a courtesy call from New Zealand High Commissioner to Malaysia David Pine at her office at Bangunan Baitul Makmur in Petra Jaya here yesterday.
Fatimah lauded New Zealand for having successfully preserved Maori culture and language, an effort which Sarawak could emulate.
“We can learn a lot from success stories of other people and New Zealand is very successful in the sense that the culture of Maori is beautifully embraced not only by the Maoris but everyone else in New Zealand. Even the signages there are not only in English.”
To this, Pine added: “Maori is the official language in New Zealand. We can use it in Parliament and in court.”
Fatimah said DBP would keep up its efforts to make sure languages of the minorities in Sarawak would not be lost amid modernisation.
“We want to make sure they will become our heritage, and this is what makes us unique and different from other states in Malaysia. We must make sure all races co-exist and no one single race is marginalised.”
Earlier, she said the courtesy call was to maintain the good relationship between New Zealand government and Malaysia government while exploring working opportunities to enhance the quality of teachers in Sarawak.
She added the discussion, which involved personnel from the Education Department and Borneo Post International Education Fair (BPIEF), also touched on early childhood education.
“We did discuss what we can do next year for BPIEF, and we are very serious in making sure there is quality education for our young children. Quality education begins with quality teachers and when we talk about quality teachers, it includes qualifications and professional development programmes.
“If Malaysia is to compare with New Zealand in terms of early childhood education, there is still a long way to go. So this is an area that we thought we could work together on, be it through BPIEF or the state Early Childhood Education Council, to organise programmes which will benefit our teachers.”
She acknowledged that New Zealand “is very strong in early childhood education” while being pleased the New Zealand High Commission in Kuala Lumpur had offered her a visit.
She thanked the commission for the invitation to study the early childhood education system and curriculum in New Zealand.
Fatimah, whose daughter acquired a doctorate in New Zealand, also encouraged adults, who are keen to pursue post-degree studies, to choose New Zealand as their destination.
“My daughter did her PhD in New Zealand and a CEO friend of mine also did her PhD there. When they came back, they said New Zealand is a good place to study. The scenery is beautiful and it is a safe place.
“One can walk on the street, feeling very secure. While there is no traffic jam, the public transport system is very reliable. People there are very friendly and in terms of exchange rate, it is 2.7 and seems quite affordable for some compared to other countries.”
She added New Zealand “is the best place for learning and the most important thing is about people, that you are made to feel like almost home.”
Among those present were New Zealand High Commission in Kuala Lumpur regional director for South East Asia Izak Human and BPIEF chairman Dorge Rajah.