Shuang Li, University of Leuven
As a multi-ethnic country, China faces a complex linguistic environment and resulting political, social and economic challenges. Hanyu (Mandarin Chinese or Putonghua), as the official language, coexists with a variety of indigenous minority languages and plays the most prominent role in everyday life. In such a multilingual context, the government and language policymakers have come up with ways to promote participatory citizenship and social integration (Information Office of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, 2009; Li, 2013: 139; Zhou, 2004: 71-95; among others). Among the measures, however, the role of translation (and interpreting) remains a relatively unexplored area.
Translation policy, as has been proved in other parts of the world (Diaz Fouces, 2004: 99-103; García González, 2004: 111; Meylaerts, 2011a; Núñez, 2014), can be of great help in multilingual societies. Therefore, this study aims to explore the roles of China’s current translation policies towards minority languages in managing multilingualism in the judiciary. Based on definitions of translation policy given by Meylaerts (2011b) and Núñez (2013), the three indispensable aspects of translation policy (i.e. translation management, translation practices and translation beliefs) will be analyzed.
Data on translation management related to legal affairs will be collected from the People’s Republic of China (PCR) Constitution and national, provincial, prefectural, county and local legislation, directives and regulations issued at both national and local levels. Translation practices in the judiciary will be investigated based on previous empirical studies on minority language communities, self-reported practice and other published materials. Regarding translation beliefs, published materials will be taken for reference. Besides, a survey will be conducted, with a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches. Firstly, respondents will be split into four categories, namely the authorities or policy-makers, citizens who only use indigenous minority languages, Hanyu monolingual citizens and bilingual or multilingual citizens who use both Hanyu and minority languages. Secondly, the values assigned by each respondent to translation practices for linguistic minorities in the judicial system will be analyzed and categorized. Also, based on the insights of Complexity Theory, the complex connections and interactions among these three aspects of translation policy will be discussed.
This research will illustrate how translation policies play a positive role in providing linguistic minorities with easier access to justice and enhancing their participation in legal affairs. To be specific, it will be argued that proper and concrete translation management may help remove language barriers in the judiciary, contribute to the development of minority languages by standardizing and improving their legal terminologies, and cultivate qualified legal translators and interpreters. It is also noteworthy that the three components of translation policy as well as non-linguistic factors (including political, demographic and bureaucratic factors) interact with each other in a complex network, which may lead to different roles for translation policy, either positive or negative, in managing multilingualism in public services.