Abdullah Mohammed Al Awadi, head of the Translation Section, said the move would help prevent holding up of some cases due to the non-availability of translators for some languages, such as French, Japanese, Korean, Bangla and Tagalog.

"We sometimes seek help from the foreign missions here, certified translators and partners, like the Public Prosecution," he said.

"However, nearly, 10 per cent of the cases are postponed for lack of translators," Al Awadi told Khaleej Times.

"The freelance translators to be hired on an hourly basis must be certified by the Ministry of Justice, have a degree in translation, a diploma in legal translation or the language wanted, and long relevant experience, he said.

"They shall sit for a test before starting work with the courts under oath. When required, they shall be contacted by phone, SMS or mail, and informed of the time and venue of the case assigned to them," Al Awadi added.

"The 11 staff translators, covering Urdu, Persian, Chinese, Bangla, Malayalam, Pashto and Russian languages, have an excellent command of at least one or two languages other than Arabic and English," he stated.

"Around 40 to 50 per cent of the parties involved in cases here speak English apart from their own languages," he added.

Al Awadi pointed out that besides translating court documents, the Translation Section provides services to visiting delegations.

"Written translation is also served to the judicial and administrative cadres of the courts, along with the Public Prosecution, " he said.

The documents submitted are translated and verified in their original languages as well," Al Awadi said.

The Translation Section recently compiled an Arabic-English glossary of the legal terms being used in the courts. Its copies have been distributed to all the judges and staffers of the courts.

"Welcoming the mini dictionary, most of the judges have called for adding more legal terms and having them translated into languages other than English, such as Persian, French, Chinese and Urdu," Al Awadi  concluded. 

By Ahmed Shaaban

© Khaleej Times 2008

 

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