27 June 2016
page 5
Issues around Interpretation
Evidence also points to lack of sensitivity shown
to the specific needs of applicants and concerns about a lack of
professionalism on the part of some interpreters hired by the Home Office from private
companies.
In an interview with the APPG in May 2016, Mr Hamid
Delrouz, an Iranian Christian convert, stated that his asylum rejections by the
Home Office were helped by the fact that, in court, his interpreter was not
familiar with Biblical terms including ‘Book of Psalms’ and ‘Jeremiah’ which were
translated incorrectly.
In further evidence submitted to the inquiry team
in May 2016, AMA UK highlights the case of one Ahmadi man who, in his
interview, felt that he had to start answering the interviewer’s questions in
his broken English and not use his Urdu-speaking interpreter, making the
interpreter angry, because some of the concepts he was conveying in Urdu were
not being translated properly or were being missed out. The Ahmadi applicant
felt that this was affecting his asylum case and was concerned that either the
interpreter did not have knowledge of Ahmadis’ beliefs or did not personally
agree with them. In this individual’s First Tier Tribunal case, when he said to
the judge that he wanted to explain his position properly when he felt the
interpreter was failing to do so, he was told by the judge not to speak in
English and only in Urdu through the interpreter.
page 7
Recommendations
In light of the findings
of this report, members of the All-Party Parliamentary Group make the following
recommendations to the Home Secretary:
5. Ensure that the case
workers and interpreters used by the Home Office and decision makers uphold the
same standards of professional conduct expected from Home Office staff. All
such individuals should be trained to have adequate knowledge of different
forms of religious persecution and the right to freedom of religion or belief,
the specific religious terminology of different religious groups as well as the
cultural contexts of applicants, especially if the applicant identifies as a
member of a religious group perceived as ‘heretical’ by others adhering to the
same religion. This depth of knowledge is needed so that the religious and
cultural contextual meaning of the asylum applicants’ words can be understood
and clearly conveyed. In particular, it must be ensured that the case
worker/interpreter’s own cultural context does not give rise to bias in their
work.
8. Ensure that the asylum
procedures are sensitive to the applicants’ experiences, backgrounds and
well-being. Also ensure that applicants are not caused unnecessary distress and
feel able to speak freely, especially in cases where the case worker/interpreter
is a member of the religious community that has carried out the applicant’s
persecution. In such cases, applicants should be re-assigned to a different interpreter
(and/or case worker) with whom they feel comfortable in speaking freely.
page 29
Interpreters
Interpreters arranged by the Home Office via
private companies provide interpretation/translation for asylum interviews.
Though not employed by the Home Office, the Home Office expect and assumes an
efficient level of language skill and professionalism from interpreters sent.
Home Office policy governs this expectation.
According to UK policy, interviewers are required
to ‘check with interpreters before the start of the interview that the
interpreter has an understanding of the religious terminology and that questions
prepared can be interpreted accurately. However, during the hearings, the APPG and
the AAG have heard first hand testimonies of interpreters failing both on their
language competency and professional conduct, thereby having a detrimental
impact on the process.
Read more here: https://freedomdeclared.org/media/Fleeing-Persecution-Asylum-Claims-in-the-UK-on-Religious-Freedom-Grounds.pdf
