Former GMP interpreter: 'One wrong word could mean justice isn't done'

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1410081_former_gmp_interpreter_one_wrong_word_could_mean_justice_isnt_done
March 07, 2011

Former GMP interpreter: 'One wrong word could mean justice isn't done'

An interpreter who refused to work for the agency axed by GMP says accurate translation is essential for the criminal justice system.

Agnieszka Moczynska worked for GMP for around two years after she was accepted on the National Register of Public Service Interpreters in 2008.

But the 33-year-old Polish translator and interpreter, who lives in Eccles, Salford, said she did not want to work for the force through ALS – because of the agency’s rates and its use of non-registered interpreters.

Ms Moczynska, a member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists, said she feared a miscarriage of justice through using non-registered translators.

She said: "You have to be highly-qualified and trained to know how to convey a message from one language to another.

"Sometimes one word translated in the wrong way can make a dramatic difference to the outcome of a case.

"If you don’t speak English, you have to be absolutely confident in what is being conveyed to the other party when you say something, and what is being said to you is absolutely correct.

"It’s not just defendants, interpreters work for victims of crime and witnesses too. Such a witness can be a crucial element in a case against anyone – a foreign or non-foreign national.

"For example, if a Polish person has been a witness to a crime against a British person, then the interpreter will work for the victim’s benefit."