Law needed to regulate the profession of translation

Translation is an important tool which carries knowledge and information about one nation and people to the other. It helps in interaction between sciences, literature and cultures. This is a very powerful knowledge or skill which has extraordinary impact on human lives and civilisation.

At the same time, it is most dangerous and risky. This is why it demands that it should get proper attention, and needs to be regulated so that none of the values and standards are compromised. A set of rules and regulations as well as clear and accurate parameters are required to recognise a person as a translator who has necessary skills in all their meanings and senses.

There is dire need of laws to regulate this highly important profession. If there is a weak translator he/she can cause a tragedy by whatever they deliver. A translator can sometime convey wrong meaning of an article if seen in a particular context. This is why, like any other profession, it must have certain rules and criteria. Like lawyers, advocates, engineers or medical practitioners, they must possess licenses or permits.

The authorities concerned in the country have made extraordinary efforts to regulate this profession and give licenses required to practice this profession. Now there is a dire need to take note of the wrong practices in this profession. A mechanism is required to make sure that the translation is not different from the original text.

We notice that, sometimes, there are lot of mistakes in translations on sign boards, documents, contracts, agreements, medical reports and administrative communications. Such works need high level of skills and sense of responsibility. A translator should not at any cost fail in conveying the same meaning as in the original work.

For extempore translation in courts, meetings, conferences, seminars and symposiums, sometimes translators are used who do not have knowledge and skills of even basic principles of correct translations. This leads to wrong interpretation. Sometime, during translation they even miss important points a speaker makes. They fail even in conveying the complete sense of the speech. There can be experienced at many places, and that the speaker is talking something else and the translator takes the audience to another world.

It is very important that the authorities concerned pay attention to the issue and everybody should cooperate in improving the condition. In many conferences, we notice that authorised and licensed translation agencies are not being used. When hiring these agencies, the event organisers do not take care of this aspect of this service even for the sake of the quality and accuracy of their efforts.

The management of the translation work requires qualification and skills as it has a significant impact on the cultural, economic, scientific and research sphere of the country. Quality translation is not possible with the help of Internet and Google. The mechanical translation, despite the efforts made to develop them, could not reach to the level which a human mind has achieved. There are many words and phrases which cannot be translated mechanically. Technology cannot express the sentiments and feelings behind the use of a word or a phrase in the original text. If done so, the translation lacks the exact message in the original text.

The Royal Decree No 18/2003 has authorised a number of Omani translators to open translation offices in the country. It was a giant leap to bring quality and professionalism in the work. However, many expatriates are doing translation jobs ignoring the earnest efforts to bring quality and accuracy to the profession. There are many expatriates who are working as sub-contractors on a competitive prices. They compromise on quality. They do not have authorised offices and ask for bills from the authorised agencies to do the job. This has led to closure of many promising translation offices and agencies. Quality translators have been rendered jobless, and they have even stopped thinking about opening translation agencies.