Languages as weapons

Review of Interpreting conflict. A comparative framework, Marija Todorova and Lucía Ruiz Rosendo

Abstract

The editors of this volume are practicing interpreters with long-standing experience in research, as well as in training interpreters and researchers. The volume contains eight chapters devoted to military interpreting and six to interpreting in humanitarian settings - an innovative and balanced mix of topics that are often related. All the chapters focus on contemporary issues, some of them very recent. Three elements can be identified throughout the compilation: first, language and discourse are strategic tools of communication in multilingual/multicultural encounters, particularly in military and humanitarian contexts; secondly, interpreters’ roles and identities have blurred contours; lastly, the issue of trust, as seen by users of the interpreting services and by interpreters themselves, permeates all chapters. Since non-professional interpreters are frequently used in the settings described in the book, specific training programs are needed. Additionally, since migrations are often caused by environmental problems, awareness should be raised of the importance of indigenous populations’ knowledge and expertise.