Criticized for 'belittling' native language, columnist writes in Filipino

Criticized for claiming that Filipino is not the "language of the learned," columnist James Soriano on Wednesday wrote in Filipino or what he earlier called as the "language of the streets." In a column published on Wednesday at the newspaper "Manila Bulletin" entitled "Wika bilang gunita," Soriano said he did not mean to appear condescending when he wrote last week that English was not "the language of learning." Soriano said he merely wanted to share how the Filipino language is viewed by those like him who studied, grew up, and thought in English and consider themselves as "split-level Filipinos." "Sa nakaraang artikulo, ninais kong magambala ang mambabasa para basahin ang di-nakasulat ... Tinangka kong hamunin ang mismong pag-unawa ng mambabasa sa kondisyon ng ating wika at identidad bilang Filipino," he wrote. "Inimbitahan ko ang [mambabasa na] suriin ang kaisahan ng aking tono sa estadong panlipunan na isiniwalat ko ... Minarapat kong isiwalat ang kondisyon ng wikang Filipino sa aking mga mata upang maabot ang madla, sapagkat ang kondisyon ng wikang Filipino ay kondisyong pangmadla," he explained. Language of the "privileged?" In his column Soriano reiterated that English was used mostly by the so-called privileged class. "Kung nakabababa man ang wikang Filipino, hindi ito dahil mas mababa ang Filipino bilang wika," he pointed out, "kundi dahil mababa ang tingin natin dito sa ating mismong lipunan." Soriano also criticized his detractors who argued that speaking in Filipino was a wasy of identifying oneself as a Filipino. "Ibig sabihin bang ang mga hindi gumagamit—o tahasang hindi gumagamit—ng wikang Filipino ay hindi na Filipino (sic)?" Soriano asked, stressing that Filipino as a national language is based loosely on the Tagalog dialect. "Iba ang kondisyon ng wikang pambansa sa labas ng Maynila," he said. "Sa kabisera mismo, Ingles pa ang ginagamit ng marami sa nakapag-aral." Ending his article, Soriano said he did not regret writing his initial piece. "Wala akong inambisyon kundi maisulat ang totoong nadarama nang walang takot," he admitted. "Buwan ng Wika" Soriano's column last week — published during the "Buwan ng Wika" (National Language Month) earned the ire of many Filipino social media users and made him one of the most talked about topics on Twitter. Soriano, however, said the lengthy discussions and debates on language shows how deep the language divide is between various sectors of the Philippines society. He noted how Filipino was the language used by people protesting on the street about a law or order written in English. He also cited how Filipino was the language used in discussing issues published in newspapers written in English. Language to speak to tindera In his column published also in the Manila Bulletin last week, Soriano said he used the Filipino language to speak to the tindera "when you went to the tindahan, what you used to tell your katulong that you had an utos, and how you texted manong when you needed sundo na." He mentioned in his column titled “Language, Learning, Identity, Privilege," that English was his “mother language." He was required to speak English at home, had all his books in English, and even prayed in English. Soriano qualified that he was proud of his proficiency in Filipino, but “it was the reading and writing that was tedious and difficult." “I spoke Filipino, but only when I was in a different world like the streets or the province; it did not come naturally to me. English was more natural; I read, wrote and thought in English," he said. Different points of view In a Facebook note posted on Saturday, Ron Capinding, Soriano's High School Filipino teacher at the Ateneo High School rushed to his defense, pointing out how his fearlessness in narrating his experiences could mean something more than what appears at face value. "Baka experiment ito, baka stimulus ng isang debateng gusto niyang palutangin ... baka gusto niyang patamaan ang ilang tao sa pamamagitan ng paggamit ng mga pangangatwiran nila sa artikulo niya, atbp. Basta. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt," Capinding said. "The content of the piece he wrote is too simplistic and naive; this couldn't be the serious and real James," Capinding added. In the note, Capinding said Soriano was a straight-A student who also uses Filipino in engaging in intellectual discourse and writing, evident in a summary the columnist wrote about Francisco Baltazar's "Florante at Laura," which Capinding says he now uses in teaching his other Filipino classes. Love for own language Meanwhile, in an interview with GMA News TV's State of the Nation, Alvin Yapan, chairperson of the Filipino Department at the Ateneo de Manila University said Soriano's article brought to life once again the Filipinos' love for their own language. "Sinabi naman niya doon sa artikulo na, sisihin ang kanyang edukasyon kung bakit siya ganoon, dapat lang naman [sisihin], kung paano siya pinalaki ng komunidad, kung paano siya pinalaki ng pamilya," Yapan explained. As the 2011 National Language Month draws to a close, Soriano, in his rejoinder, reiterated that he only asked questions because he wanted to have answers to one of the most glaring, polarizing and dividing issues of language that permeates the country today. "Ngayong napag-uusapan ang isyu ng wikang pambansa sa Internet at media, naghahanap ako ng masusing tugon mula sa madla," Soriano said. "Sapagkat, sa palagay ko, walang mas mainam na paraan upang suriin ang gunitang pambansa kundi sa pagdiskurso tungkol sa Filipino bilang bansa sa Buwan ng Wika," he added. - VVP, GMA News