The quest for professional status

In the field of translation studies, with Maltese as the target language, we cannot really boast of a tradition. Indeed, its history goes back to the "pragmatic" papers or essays published under the title Bible Translation And Language, edited by Dun Karm Sant in 1992. As far as translations themselves go, Mikiel Anton Vassalli's Storja tas-Sultan Ċiru (1831) from the French original by Rollin is a typical example of a flash in the pan.

Analytical comparative studies with parallel texts, then, are still in their infancy and restricted to translations from French into Maltese and English into Maltese only.

Possibly, these are the main factors that explain why the professional status of local translators still remains very much uncertain today despite the solid training that prospective translators are receiving at post-graduate level in our University, not to mention the lucrative jobs a good number of Maltese nationals have landed in Europe as a result of Malta's accession as a fully-fledged member of the EU.

However, even here we cannot speak of a bed of roses. Not without justifiable reasons. In the period immediately following accession day in 2004, there was a vacuum in this field that attracted a motley crowd who got the job on a temporary basis, almost automatically renewed, with the consequence of blocking access to better-qualified candidates as these gradually became available.

Some would argue that this was, to some extent, unavoidable. We were not even sure whether Malta's demand for the recognition of its language would be acceded to, never mind planning in advance for the over 80 full-time jobs that would be made available with EU institutions in the field of translation and interpreting.

Whether or not this is the whole truth or only part of it, the fact remains there was what seemed to be an abysmal vacuum and "lawyer-linguists"/"professional" interpreters and translators mushroomed where before these were just a handful. I will never cease to marvel at how so many "temporary" posts were filled with the connivance of hand-picked (or, shall I say, self-appointed) experts who took it upon themselves to determine the DNA of translators into Maltese. Evaluating competence in translation is definitely not an easy task and it takes a modicum of humility, added to a nigh complete linguistic mastery of the tools inherent to the job, for anyone to pose as acting in the best interest of readers and clients, whoever they may be.

Today, of course, selection is done in a much better and professional manner but, unfortunately, it has not helped to raise the status of full-time, freelance and part-time translators at home. Full-timers are still a rare species anyway, employed with translation agencies for the most part (with only a few in industry and public institutions) and usually work under extreme time pressure for meagre pay, without a legally-protected professional status. They are being exploited and they are fully aware of it. Yet, they end up accepting their plight as inevitable because they are held in such low esteem by employers who seem to believe that even a language student fresh out of college can do the job.

These employers, snug in the belief that to secure contracts what ultimately counts is offering the lowest bid, are not that keen on quality. And if this continues the translation business in Malta, which has just taken off, will implode sooner rather than later.

It's time to resist the mentality that translation is mere secretarial work that anyone can perform. And, in order to achieve this, it is essential that qualified Maltese translators (and, of course, interpreters) unite in an association or union with the aim of shedding their present-day amateurish image and establish themselves as a professional body. If, as a category, we want the recognised status of experts and, in turn, safeguard our professional interests, now is the time to act. Let's not waste anymore time.

Dr Aquilina is senior lecturer, Department of Translating and Interpreting Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Malta.