To no man’s land ─ the crossover culture of judiciary interpreters
Date Issued
2010
Date
2010
Author(s)
Chang, Li-Hsien
Abstract
My thesis focuses on the judicial interpretation in criminal trials which involve aboriginal and foreign defendants. There are two main purpose of my thesis. First is to introduce methods for improving the system. The second one is to analyze the meaning of social control and the basic human drive behind the system.
In Taiwan, there are only rough ideas about judicial interpreter. There is almost none of qualified judicial interpreter, neither the educational or certification institution. Except all the technique difficulty, the bigger and fundamental problem is how to decide whether the defendant or the witness needs the legal interpreter? Usually the decision is made by the Judge or the prosecutor, though they may not have the professional knowledge of linguistics. And there is no clear criterion or standard operating procedure for them to follow with.
Therefore, in connection with my first purpose, I referred the legal interpretation institutions in America, European Human Right Court and Japan by reading academic and positivistic research papers. And I proposed three suggestions to reform the system. First one, Judges or the prosecutors should determine the language ability of defendant or witness by following the guidebook edited by linguists. Second one, for the purpose of substantial defense in due process, once the defendant or witness shows inefficiency of Chinese language, they are entitled of free interpreters’ service. The forum of legal aid should offer free interpreters to limited language ability defendant at the same time they provide counselors. And the last one, the trial should be recorded by video thoroughly to save both versions of testimonies of defendants and interpreters. And if there are argues about the accuracy of interpreters testimony, besides confronting on the spot, it’s practical to determine the evidentiary effect by other qualified interpreters’ examination.
With regard to my second purpose, I considered deeply about the function and effect of the legal interpretation in social controlling mechanism. As we all know, when the accused be classified according to their nationality, the accused are marked as the outsider at the same time. By noticing their cultural difference from the native society, the nationals might rethink their own cultural and absorb the foreign cultural factors into original society. Or they might make a native judgment and exclude the foreigner without hesitation.
In any event, they both are the process of social integration. And I would like to discover and discuss the role and effect of the legal interpreter in the interaction of native judge (including jury)、the prosecutor and the foreigner accused. I adopted deconstructive and social psychological approach to observe relevant papers and to derive my statement.
Subjects
judiciary interpreter
fair trial and due process
agent
social integrity
SDGs
Type
thesis
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