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*Editorials*

*Japanese language diplomacy*
Oct 5, 2013                                                                           

An expert panel has proposed increasing the number of Japanese  teachers sent abroad to teach the Japanese language as a way of  improving relations with members of the Association of Southeast Asian  Nations. The proposal is one positive step forward toward a fuller  recognition of just how many students in the ASEAN member nations  the  Philippines, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia,  Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam  are studying Japanese, and just how  vital that is for Japans ties with this important region.

 The proposal was not just about upping the level of Japanese grammar,  however. The panel seemed to recognize the need for promoting a genuine  exchange between Japan and ASEAN countries. This means not just  exporting knowledge of the Japanese language and commercially driven  popular culture, but also importing the culture of ASEAN countries.

 Of course, language programs are essential to any exchange. The Japan  Foundation found that the number of Japanese-language students in ASEAN  countries increased in 2012. Indonesia had 872,000 students, Thailand  129,000, and Malaysia 33,000, all up from 2009. With the Olympics  coming, these figures will surely increase. However, the numbers of  Japanese students studying the languages of those countries should also  increase. 

The panel could have recommended more language study here in  Japan as well.

 To follow up on increasing Japanese-language study abroad, Japan will  need to produce teachers with sufficient training. Japanese teachers  will need to find fresh ways of teaching and learn how to be sensitive  to the nuances and differences in other cultures. For any exchange to  succeed, Japanese teachers will need to adapt to ASEAN cultures just as  much as students in the ASEAN region need to learn Japanese ways of  doing things.

 The original aims of ASEAN were to establish cooperation in economic,  social and educational fields; promote regional peace and stability;  and encourage respect for justice, the rule of law and adherence to the  principles of the United Nations Charter. Japan shares such aims. The  expert panels suggestions encourage the search for more common ground.  Culture, even with diverse forms in different countries, is a positive  way of finding common values.

 At the same time, cultural and linguistic exchange is a way of  respecting diversity. The panel recommended TV programs, films and  animation, but deeper study of culture is also needed. What is also  needed is more active, involved study of less commercially oriented  cultural expressions such as dance, music, and literature.

 In all exchanges, Japan should be aware of the potential for its  robustly developed contemporary culture to overwhelm the traditional  cultures of other countries.

 For too long, cross-cultural exchanges between the East Asian and  Southeast Asian regions have been hindered by conservative attitudes and  social resistance. There is no better time than now for all nations in  these regions to knock down old barriers and share their fascinating,  valuable cultures with each other.

japantimes.co.jp

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