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The United Nation Security Council continually struggles with the langua ge barrier.
U.
P.
l. Pltolo
The SOLUTION
to
the
LANGUAGE
BARRIER
ls there a solution to the Babel of languages dividing our
world? Read, in this article, why the language barrier has been
impossible to demolish ti/1 now.
by
Lester
L.
Grobbe
"STICKS
and stones may break my
bones, but words will nevcr hurt
me." So the chi ldrea's limerick
goes. But it isn't truc.
The wrong translation of
o1u word
may
bavc caused the deaths of 200,000
people on one occasion!
It bappencd
in
the summer of 1945.
Japanese leaders had alrcady realized
severa! months before that World War
JI
was lost. The question was how to go
about making peace, considering the
faoatical determination of sorne of the
"war lords."
A Tragic Misioterpretation
On July 26, the Potsdam Dedaration,
demanding the surrender of the Japa–
nese, was broadcast to Japan. Here was
.ln opportunity to begin negotíations for
pcace. The Japanese cabínet díd not
intcnd to reject · the Declaration out–
right. They wanted to use the Declar.l–
tion as a basis for negotiahons. But they
needed time to plan theír rcply.
No decision could be made imme–
díately. But the Japanese press would
undoubtedly demand a statement. Prc–
míer Suzuki met the press on July 28.
He stated the cabinet was kecpíng to a
policy of
mok/IJtlfJII.
Thís Japaoese
word
mok!JJalm
has no exact couoter–
part in English. It is even vague in
Japanese. It could mean "to withhold
comment," Suzukí's intended meaning.
But it also means "to ignore."
The premier had beeo ínstructed to
say that the cabinet had reached no
decision as yet on the Potsdam Dcclara–
tion. Unfortunately, hís statement was
completely ambiguous to the listeníng
newsmen. Japan's Domei News Agency
translated Premíer Suzuki's statement
into English and broadcast it to the
West. But it used the other mcaning of
mok11satm.
The Allíes monitoring the
broadcast heard that the Japanese had
"ignored" the Potsdam Declaration.
A few days later the atomic bombs