The Linguist

@Linguist_CIOL AU Adopts Swahili as Official Working Language, 9/2/22 The approval follows a request by Tanzanian Vice-president Dr Phillip Mpango. In his request, Dr Mpango suggested that Swahili is one of the most widely spoken languages in Africa with about 100 million people within and outside the continent. "Kiswahili is already in use in various communities including the East African Community (EAC), the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as well as a teaching language in many African countries," he said. What the papers say… International Booker Prize Announces Longlist 'Tracing Ring Around the World', 10/3/22 Tomb of Sand by Indian writer Geetanjali Shree has become the first book translated from Hindi to be nominated for the International Booker prize… The 64-year-old author's fifth novel is among 13 titles in competition for the prestigious award for translated fiction, a £50,000 prize split evenly between author and translator… [Frank] Wynne, who is the first translator to head the prize's judging panel, selected the longlist with four fellow judges. Translators Go to Ukraine-Poland Border to Help Refugees, 11/3/22 Two friends have travelled from Cornwall to the Ukraine-Polish border to help translate for refugees. Charlotte Hobson and Gavin Knight are Russian speaking translators helping Ukrainian refugees arriving in Poland… Ms Hobson said they helped the refugees find accommodation and reach host families. They told BBC Radio Cornwall they were "surviving on adrenaline" having not had much sleep. The latest from the languages world UK visa issues for Ukrainians A lack of interpreting services has been identified as one of the issues in NHS maternity care that puts pregnant Black, Asian and migrant women and their unborn babies at risk. Black women are four times as likely to die in childbirth as white women. Intrusive questions and upfront charges are among the causes, explained Birthrights CEO Amy Gibbs, and a "failure to provide adequate interpreting services compounds these barriers". NEWS & EDITORIAL APRIL/MAY The Linguist 5 The need for Ukrainians fleeing the war to apply for UK visas in English has caused further difficulties for those seeking safety in Britain. Following criticism of the tight visa restrictions for Ukrainian refugees, the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, announced a loosening of the requirements on 10 March. In response, the CEO of Amnesty International UK, Sacha Deshmukh, said: "The process is still full of red tape, with desperate and exhausted people still being required to provide birth certificates, proof of relationships and residence, and with everything still needing to be translated into English." He called for a full visa waiver in line with many other European countries. Ukrainians hoping to relocate under the UK Government's Family Visa Scheme have to create an account on the Home Office website and fill out an online form in English, which includes terms such as 'biometrics'. They must also upload documents proving they meet the criteria, such as details of their sponsor and proof they have been living in Ukraine since 2021, all translated into English. Amid reports of people completing the forms using Google Translate, immigration lawyer Nick Nason explained: "It costs money to get documents translated and it adds to the timeline." The government said submitting documents in English speeds up the process, but added: "if someone is unable to provide translated documents they should still submit their application with untranslated documents". Language has been "weaponised" as part of Russia's military attack on Ukraine, with Russian President Vladimir Putin equating Ukraine's language policies with a genocide of Russian speakers. The information war also utilises bots to spread pro-Russian narratives in English on social media. Meanwhile, new laws have been passed in Russia to restrict the distribution of information, leading to calls for people around the world to share counter communications in Russian. Writers including the Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich signed an open letter asking Russian speakers to use "all possible means of communication", including cold-calling Russian citizens, to "tell the full truth" about the war in Ukraine. Language as a weapon of war NHS: pregnant migrants at risk © SHUTTERSTOCK

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