Unspun

There was once upon a time when it was universally accepted that Malaysian had a better command of the English language than Indonesians.

It wasn’t arrogance then, just a fact of life because of Malaysia’s British colonial history. For all the sins of the Brits Malaysians could be grateful to them for leaving behind an efficient civil service and a love for the Queen’s English.

But much has changed since those days. The hypocrite Mahathir Mohamad, in trying to display his nationalistic credentials changed the medium of instruction in schools from English to Malay. That, and other misguided nationalistic sentiments since then has seen the steady deterioration of the use of English among Malaysians.

One can safely argue that a certain work ethic also went out the window with the need to learn and master a language. So it seemed inevitable when Malaysia’s Ministry of Defense was red-faced recently because the language skills were so bad that they relied on Google Translate to render their copy into English.

The result: one huge embarassment and a source of mirth for many Malaysians. Check out the story below that appeared in The Star:

Mindef blames Google Translate for ‘poke-eye’ blunder

By P. ARUNA

RAWANG: The Defence Ministry had relied on the free online Google Translate for the English version of its official website, which resulted in the many mistakes found on the site.

“We have corrected the mistakes and translations are no longer done that way. “It is now done manually,” Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said here yesterday.

He admitted that the inaccurate translations had caused much embarrassment to the ministry.

It was recently reported in The Star that amusing translations of the staff dress code on the ministry’s official website were being shared on social networking websites.

The ministry’s website had published translations such as “clothes that poke eye”, a literal translation of pakaian yang menjolok mata, which in actual fact means revealing clothes in Bahasa Malaysia.

Others included “collared shirts and tight Malay civet berbutang three”, which, in Malay, is berkolar baju Melayu cekak musang berbutang tiga.

Another was the brief summary of the ministry’s history on the website, which read: “After the withdrawal of British army, the Malaysian Government take drastic measures to increase the level of any national security threat”.

The ministry took down its English translated version several hours after it went viral on Twitter and Facebook.

In an immediate response, a ministry spokesman had said that a clarification had been posted on the website, saying that corrective action was being taken to ensure that the translations were accurate.

“We did not intend for the English translations to turn out that way,” said Dr Zahid during a visit to the National Service camp here.

However, a check on the website showed that the English translations were still unavailable.

Happy New Year everyone. Still to get back to mother ship in Jakarta so for the meantime here,s some photos fro m Myanmar to keep you occupied.

Still traveling and managed to catch some wifi in Mandalay. So just a few photos to share for now. Merry Christmas.

There is some weird shit that happens in Indonesia. One of them turned into a tragi-comedy recently.

It all began when a university student Mega Tri Pratiwi wanted to play a prank on her friend. So she dresses up as a Suster Ngesot, a ghost in the Indonesian pantheon of ghosts that dresses up like a nurse (Suster) and who crawls around on her hand and body (Ngesot = crawls around using only hand and body).

Then she parks herself in front of the apartment lift and arranges for her friends to bring the unwitting victim up. Unfortunately for her, the friend was accompanies by a security guard (stapam in Indonesian) who had pretty good security reflexes.

As the video below shows, when the lift door opens her friend jumps back in fright, but the Satpam jumps into action, kicking her in the face and breaking a tooth.

As things are in Indonesia where the rich often bully their way over the poor, the student’s father, a businessman has reported the Satpam to the police for assault. The Satpam is being investigated but online the video has gone viral and on liners, including a Facebook account has been largely unanimous in praising the Satpam and condemning Mega and her father for not taking responsibility for Mega’s actions.

What Unspun wants to know out of this incident, apart from the news that the Satpam would not be prosecuted and in fact rewarded for his actions, is by what feat of fecund imagination did such a ghost come into being?

Why a ghost dressed as a Nurse? Why is she ngesot-ing? Was she struck down? And how did the ghost get the Nurse uniform in the afterlife?

And what is the source of inspiration for the manifestation of other Indonesian ghosts such as :

Kuntilanak, a long haired woman dressed in white with a huge hole in her back

Pocong, a ghosts still in in a death shroud – when Muslims die they are wrapped in a shroud with the head and feet ends tied. Apparently they come back if you forgot to untie the top end when burying.

Tuyul – a little tyke. Indonesia’s equivalent to Chuckie.

All these ghosts have gone into show business with Indonesian filmmakers seeking a quick buck from the nation’s preoccupation to scare the pants out of themselves. The ghosts and videos from the movies are lovingly chronicled here.

You have to wonder about the psyche of the people who think up these ghosts though…

Any Malaysian readers can help identify who the Malaysians are behind PT Pilva Inhutani? (So far there are two versions of the name, the other is Silva Inhutani)

If they are guilty of the crimes alleged then they should be swiftly brought to book for it.

via IPW wants Malaysians probed in Lampung deaths | The Jakarta Post.

A police watchdog wants the government to investigate the involvement of Malaysian-based PT Pilva Inhutani in the killing of 30 residents of in Mesuji, Lampung in 2003.

Neta S. Pane, chairman of the Indonesian Police Watch, said the government should take firm actions against any Malaysian investors in indonesia who broke the law, tempo.co reported.

Malaysian palm oil investors in Kalimantan might also be involved in the slaughter of orangutans, he alleged.

Lampung residents presented their allegations about the brutal killings of 20 people in Mesuji to the House of Representatives’ Commission III overseeing human rights on Wednesday.

Thirty people were killed in 2003 after violence erupted when PT Silva Inhutani took the residents’ land to plant rubber and oil palm plantations.

You have to wonder where there is an expiry date for the sins that the Dutch perpetrated on Indonesia.

Sure, the Dutch who colonized Indonesia were not exactly the most savory of colonizers and they did a lot of harm in Indonesia but when, oh when, will Indonesians like taxman Fuad Rahmany say: “Enough already! It’s time we took responsibility for our actions rather than blame the Dutch.”

Sadly, however, he is not alone. Unspun’s seen too many incidents like this to think its an isolated case of passing the buck, or Guilder, as the case may be. This habit – of not taking responsibility for their actions – seems endemic.

Could it be because of the Joyoboyo Sindrome, where individuals cannot make a difference and the only hope they have of better times is to wait for the Ratu Adil to come save them.

But hang on…is Unspun falling into the trap of blaming present attitudes on a 12th Century soothsayer…. ?

Dirjen Pajak: Korupsi, Penyakit Kronis Sejak Zaman VOC

Foto: Angga/detikFinance

Jakarta – Direktur Jenderal (Dirjen) Pajak Fuad Rahmany menyatakan korupsi merupakan penyakit kronis di Indonesia yang telah ada sejak zaman VOC. Proses pembangunan yang cepat menjadi pemicu berkembangnya korupsi di Indonesia.

“Korupsi ini kita semua menyadari sebagai penyakit yang kronis bagi bangsa Indonesia karena sudah lama berlangsung. Kalau kita baca buku sejarah dan koran-koran, sejak kita merdeka praktik korupsi sudah terjadi tapi sporadis atau satu-satu. VOC juga mengalami penyakit korupsi,” jelas Fuad dalam peringatan Hari Anti Korupsi di Kantor Pusat Ditjen Pajak, Jalan Gatot Subroto, Jakarta, Selasa (6/12/2012).

Fuad mengatakan, upaya pemberantasan korupsi sudah dilakukan sejak dulu, namun belum bisa diberantas habis.

“Jadi korupsi semakin besar karena kesempatan besar akibat proses pembangunan yang cepat,” kata Fuad.

Mantan Ketua Badan Pengawas Pasar Modal dan Lembaga Keuangan (Bapapam LK) ini mengatakan dirinya adalah mantan aktivis saat menjadi mahasiswa Universitas Indonesia di 1974 saat peristiwa Malari berlangsung.

“Tema demo saat itu anti investasi asing yang dibakar Toyota Astra Motor. Tapi kalau anda lihat benihnya adalah kolusi antara penguasa saat itu dengan investor asing. Saat itu harus ada upeti dari investor ke penguasa,” jelasnya.

Karena itu dia meminta para pegawai Ditjen Pajak yang menurutnya adalah instansi tulang punggung negara untuk sama-sama memberantas korupsi sampai nol.

What can you say about this?

Putting a photo of your face on the cover of drinking water cups that is then distributed to the landslide victims in Makassar.

How low can you go to trawl for votes? What blind thirst for power drives men to such insensitive means to acquire and keep power?

Wins an Unspun shit-for-brains tag.

Tipped by @sheque in his Twitter feed

Air Minum Bergambar Politisi Beredar di Lokasi Bencana – Tribunnews

Senin, 5 Desember 2011 18:35 WIB

Laporan Wartawan Tribun Timur,Rudhy

TRIBUNNEWS.COM,MAKASSAR – Air minum kemasan bergambar politisi beredar di lokasi bencana alam  di Jalan Sukadami, Kelurahan Panakkukang Makassar, Sulawesi Selatan, Minggu (5/12/2011). Lokasi bencana sekaan menjadi momentum bagi kalangan politisi dari berbagai partai politik untuk menggalang dukungan serta simpatisan masyarakat.

Berdasarkan pantauan Tribun di lokasi bencana longsor, Senin (5/12/2011) yang menelan korban jiwa sebanyak delapan orang akibat ditimpa reruntuhan tembok bangunan PT The Mutiara Jalan AP Pettarani Makassar, kemarin, tampaknya menjadi ajang unjuk gigi sekaligus ajang sosialisasi para politisi.

Terbukti, puluhan dos air mineral bergambar Ketua umum DPP PAN Hatta Rajasa dan Koordinator Wilayah DPD Partai Golkar Makassar beredar luas di lokasi bencana alam.

Hatta Rajasa adalah Menteri Perekonomian RI disebut-sebut bakal maju di Pemilihan Presiden yang dihelat 2014 mendatang, sementara Yakqin digemboskan maju di pemilihan Wali Kota Makassar 2013 mendatang.

Dari pengamatan Tribun, puluhan warga yang menjadi korban naas bencana longsor tampak berdesak-desakan mengambil air mineral berlebel politisi tersebut, bahkan tak jarang mereka saling berebutan.

It has been a pleasure to work with Ollie in her role as Chairwoman for ON|OFF. Throughout the preparation stages she has been full of ideas, contacts, flexibility, firmness and never too proud to admit the things she did not know and to ask for help.

And she’s acquitted herself extremely well on Saturday when the ON|Off event achieved – if the Twitter feed for #onoffID is any indication – wild success. Unspun’s observations and thoughts of the event and the evolution of the blogging scene in this country in a later posting but in the meantime here’s Ollie’s own account of her journey as this year’s Chairwoman:

ON|OFF 2011 – Ideas Meet Opportunities

December 5, 2011 Ollie

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It’s been a long journey. Early May 2011, Ong & Hanny come to me and asked me to be the Chairwoman of Pesta Blogger 2011 or we call it now ON|OFF 2011. I was overwhelmed (still is). It’s been a BIG event since 2007. I don’t know if I can do that. Ong then explain my job descriptions, then also plans for this year’s event. I have some ideas regarding how the event should work, I told them on the spot, they like it. I still have plenty of ideas for ON|OFF, so, Bismillah, let’s do it.

We do our first media conference in July 2011 to kick off the event. I felt like a student learning for an exam when I get all the media documents from Nia. I’ve been connecting with medias, but mostly to talk about myself. This time it’s different. I become ‘the face’ of ON|OFF 2011 also represent our sponsors: Acer Indonesia & US Embassy. New experience for me.

Read the rest of Ollie’s post here

Here’s why:

1. It took them a week before expressing regret. A week is a very long time in today’s BB Messenger-fuelled world of communications. In the meantime word has already been spreading around town about RIM’s seemingly slow response.

2. After all this time and it was short of an apology. It was only a “regret”. (You can imagine the internal debate. Executive: “Do we apologize?” Lawyer: “No. We don’t because it would open us up to lawsuits.” Well, in Canada maybe but have you considered that Indonesians apologize al the time for the small infractions and its culturally expected for someone to do so.

3. Trying to inject corporate self-serving message (“It is very important to us to continue to demonstrate that we’re a strong, responsible corporate citizen in Indonesia”) when all the public wants to know is are you sorry, do you take responsibility, are you empathic, why it happened and what you are going to do about it. Nobody wants to hear or care how strong and responsible a corporate citizen you are.

4. Pointing fingers (“We are reviewing [the contracts with Experiential and Hill & Associates], as part of the … investigation to really take a look at the details, [and] relationship, to the event,” he said) As everyone should have learned from BP’s fiasco, it doesn’t matter whether it was your vendor or contractor who is at fault, when you are a big brand and it happened under your watch, you need to take responsibility and not blame, or imply it is the fault of others.

All classic no-no’s in the practice of Crisis and Issues Management from a PR perspective.So what will happen next? If RIM is very lucky things will die down. If they are not then they may be be heading for more trouble as others react against the mistakes they are making. It’s all very unpredictable in crisis-like situations, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t minimize the potential flash points.

via RIM Regrets BlackBerry Promo Gone Wrong | The Jakarta Globe

Research In Motion said on Friday that it regretted the mad rush for the new BlackBerry smartphone on Nov. 25 that left 90 people unconscious and three injured.

“We sincerely regret that many loyal customers experienced frustration and were upset, and that some individuals suffered injuries,” Gregory Wade, RIM’s regional managing director for East Asia, told the Jakarta Globe.

He also said that staff from RIM and others involved in the event had visited hospitals to “extend our support and sympathy to those injured.”

“We are deeply committed to Indonesia and greatly value the passionate support Indonesians have shown for BlackBerry smartphones and popular apps like BBM,” he said.

“It is very important to us to continue to demonstrate that we’re a strong, responsible corporate citizen in Indonesia.”

The new BlackBerry Bold 9790 was made available first in the world in Indonesia and the first 1,000 people at the launch at Pacific Place mall had the chance to buy one for Rp 2.3 million ($255). The half-off discount attracted a huge crowd, some of whom had started lining up the day before.

Wade said the Nov. 25 event had been organized on behalf of RIM by event organizer Experiential and security consultant Hill & Associates.

“We are actively cooperating with the authorities who are investigating this incident,” he said, adding that RIM was also undertaking its own investigation.

He said the company was also conducting an internal review, focusing on preventing a similar incident happening in Indonesia.

“We are reviewing [the contracts with Experiential and Hill & Associates], as part of the … investigation to really take a look at the details, [and] relationship, to the event,” he said….

Anyone would be proud to have a kid like Zach Wahls. And he was speaking in defense of the right of his parents to marry legally. His parents who raised him are lesbians.