Our Desk – The choice of English

Julie Zhu

I often hear people complaining how terribly Macau ranks in terms of English language usage. “Hong Kong speaks English, here [in Macau] no one does.”
Does this criticism sound familiar to you? You may even be one of those who have resorted to this comparison. Of course, other people argue that “if they don’t even need to use English, why should they have to speak a language which is not their own?”
So here are my questions.
First, does Macau really need to speak English well? Second, if Macau does need to speak English well, then why? And finally, are there any groups who should speak English as opposed to everyone speaking it?
My answer to the first question is: yes, Macau does need a proficient level of English.
My answer to the second question is: yes, especially when Macau claims to be international. That is:
– Even if Macau is fluent in ten languages derived from Chinese ethnicities (no need to argue whether a dialect is a language or not), Macau will not be considered international. Solely speaking one language wherein characters are similar does not make it international. Only when a culture is mixed with several different types of languages does it become international.
– Macau still has nationalities from other parts of the world coming to and staying in the territory.
– Realistically, if Macau is mainly a service industry city and wants to make money from its clients, then it should be able to speak its clients’ native languages.
This situation differs, however, for those who come to Macau to work (for better pay), a group in which I myself am included. For people like me, who are service providers, we are expected to speak several languages, and not to complain that people who come to me and ask for service don’t speak English.
Well, you know what? We are the ones who want our clients’ money. That is life in Macau: it wants its clients’ money.
Lastly, my answer to the third question is: yes, there are only certain groups who “should” speak English, while the rest should make the decision based on their personal interests.
For me, language is a kind of colonization.
Think about it: one day, dogs start meowing and cats start barking. How would you react? For me, I might view it in a humorous way because, after all, I will never see animals in the same way that some people in this world think and talk about them. As the Chinese saying goes, “you are not the fish, so how do you understand the fish’s happiness? You are not [me], so how do you know that I don’t understand the fish’s happiness?”
Macau is a city dominated by Cantonese speakers. However, in general, people here don’t ask “invaders” to speak Cantonese. Obviously, the reasons behind this stance are open for discussion.
Instead of asking people like me, a temporary passenger, to speak their language, they resort to Mandarin. Some of them do not understand Mandarin, to which they reply “I don’t understand you,” which in fact is a subtle way of saying, “please go away, I am not going to explain that to you.” Some understand, upon which they give you instructions and provide you with information. Same goes for English.
English is never a ‘must’ for everyone. It’s a personal choice. Julie Zhu