Valero-Garcés, Carmen & Tipton, Rebecca (eds) (2017).
Ideology, Ethics and Policy Development in Public Service
Interpreting and Translation. Bristol: Multilingual Matters, pp.
230, hardback, €34.95. ISBN: 978-1-78309-752-4.
his volume, edited by Carmen Valero-Garcés (Universidad de
Alcalá, Spain) and Rebecca Tipton (University of Manchester,
United Kingdom), is part of the Translation, Interpreting and
Social Justice in a Globalised World Series. The aim of this edition is to
provide an approach to bridging professionals and policymakers on the
impact that research has had in public service interpreting and
translation (PSIT).
T
This book is divided into two parts: the first one (Re-)defining
Concepts and Policy contains five chapters that explore the
conceptualisation of ethical, ideological and professional implications in
policy making in PSIT. The second part Experiences From the Field
emphasises empirical and case studies on how these notions are
depicted in an array of scenarios.
In chapter 1, Cáceres underpins the role of interpreters in historical
conflicts. From the Reconquista to the Early Modern period, the author
discusses that “loyalty and loyal are recurring words in the interpreters’
personal files, ambassadors’ reports and clerks’ correspondence
material” (5) and how that notion has contributed to shape ideologies
around the figure of the interpreter. Through a series of examples
questioning how professionals make decisions in war crisis, she comes
to the conclusion that there is an evident preference for “native
interpreters” because they are “less sensitive to ethical dilemmas”
(18). In a similar line, Martín Ruano, in chapter 2, focuses on the
importance of recognition for PSIT. She elaborates on the
misconception of how translators in these contexts are thought to ‘just
translate’ (Hale 2005, 2015), and the need for visibility of their duties.
In her view, “recognition theories help to approach norms not merely
in a restrictive manner, but rather as a starting point for agency” (35).
In this volume, particular focus is placed on how translation interacts
with politics. In chapter 3, Tipton highlights how PSIT has impacted
third sector organisations from a discursive perspective. The author
pays attention to refugee community organisations (RCOS) and
migrant and refugee community organisations (MRCOs), as they bring
a new perspective to understanding ‘intrinsic translation’ (48). She
conducted a number of interviews in four different entities, which
provide rich insight into interactions with service users, with the aim of
encouraging further longitudinal studies in this field. Resorting to
political ideology, Gentile (chapter 4) describes how this is embedded
in linguistic services, and how interpreters’ ethics should pay attention
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to the link between public service interpreting (PSI) and social justice
(79). On the other hand, Brander (chapter 5) highlights the lack of
deontological principles in the training of translators and interpreters.
She delves into concepts such as moral development, dilemmas and
their implications in what she calls ‘absent curriculum’ for future
professionals.
As mentioned above, the second part of the book showcases the
experience of five PSIT scenarios. From prison communication to
courtrooms or correctional facilities; they all bring together various
perspectives on ethical and ideological issues related to the main
theme of this volume. Valero-Garcés discusses the communication
system in Spanish prisons, which is administered by different
professions under the same institutional umbrella. The results of a pilot
project carried out at the University of Alcalá (Spain) hold that there is
a mismatch between the understanding of communication by prison
staff and interpreters, respectively; but it is agreed that there should
be a greater familiarity with professional codes of ethics, continuing
education and collaboration among professionals to guarantee their
success (128).
Equally interesting is chapter 7, which draws upon a project by Jérôme
Devaux dealing with the interface between videoconference
interpreting (VCI) and court interpreting (CI). He examines court
interpreters’ perceptions of ethics and the extent to which the
interviewees encountered conflicts with technology, pointing out a
need to equip interpreters properly in legal settings. In a similar study,
Salaets and Balogh discuss the Co-Minor-IN/QUEST project
(Cooperation in Interpreter-Mediated Questioning of Minors), which
focuses on pre-trial interviews with children in the context of criminal
cases. The authors include their quantitative analysis of cases from
Italy and Belgium, which serves as a pivot for further research models
and the inter-professional development of training materials. Finally,
the two final chapters discuss ethical issues in Poland (Tryuk) and the
United States (Bancroft). Chapter 9 focuses on how PSIT serves to
relieve tension in asylum hearings in Poland and discusses the
relevance of intercultural communication in professional training;
chapter 10 offers a study of how trauma is integrated in professional
practice of interpreters. It analyses interviews with social workers and
lawyers, covering issues like accuracy, assessment, impartiality and
cultural mediation.
In conclusion, this timely volume sheds light on the relevance of
translation in mediation and its implications in policy making in public
services. Not only does it offer an overview of the theoretical
backgrounds which help draft further research; but it effectively shows
what are the main benefits from achieving societal impacts through
translation and interpreting practices.
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References
Hale, Sandra (2005). “The interpreter’s identity crisis.” Juliane
House, Rosario Martín Ruano and Nicole Baumgarten (eds).
Translation and the construction of identity. Seoul: IATIS, 14-29.
Hale, Sandra (2015). “Approaching the bench: Teaching
magistrates and judges how to work effectively with
interpreters.” MonTI, special issue on Legal Interpreting at a
Turning Point 7, 163-180.
Javier Moreno-Rivero
University of California, Los Angeles
E-mail: j.moreno@ucla.edu
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