By Karen Poh
BRIMBANK residents Martha Tsegaw Menda and Nigiste Tesema are elated to receive the State Government’s Interpreter’s Scholarships.
The scholarships, worth $1200, were awarded to students of the Diploma of Interpreting at RMIT University in two African languages, Amharic and Nuer.
The Minister Assisting the Premier on Multicultural Affairs, Daniel Andrews, said the awards formed part of the Government’s language services strategy to ensure that all Victorians had access to information and services.
“Establishing a pool of accredited interpreters in languages whose speakers have recently arrived in Victoria is extremely important,” he said.
“Many recent arrivals, especially those from a refugee background, have not had the opportunity to gain proficiency in English.”
Sedat Mulayim, who is the Diploma of Interpreting’s course coordinator at RMIT, praised the Government’s policy decision and said interpreters were a key part of the settlement process.
Unlike the more established languages such as Vietnamese, Turkish, Italian, Greek or Spanish, the “emerging languages” spoken by migrants from Africa, Sudan and Somalia did not have a steady base of interpreters, he said.
“Interpreters are a critical link,” Mr Mulayim said.
“Because of their language skills and cultural differences it’s very difficult for them [migrants] to get into mainstream Australian life and they face many problems. They need interpreters urgently so they can get involved in the community,” he said.
And the achievements of the scholarship recipients were perhaps the most laudable of all. The interpreting classes were held in the evenings and most students had day jobs.
But Ms Menda and Ms Tesema maintained that while it was hard work, they were grateful for the way the scholarship has opened up opportunities for them to serve the migrant community.
On top of the demands of the course, Ms Menda juggles her time between her job at Centrelink, caring for her family with two young children, and volunteering at SBS and community radio station 3CR doing shows in Amharic.
“I never thought I’d be able to do the course when I heard about the scholarship,” said Ms Tesema, who works as a Patient Service Assistant at Mercy Hospital.
“I don’t have any time to do this course. I was very very busy, but when I asked my employer they gave me the time to do it,” she said.
Aware of the pressing needs facing the migrant community, many of whom live in the West, Ms Menda and Ms Tesema’s workplace experiences have also fuelled their resolve to become interpreters.
“At Centrelink, I have many non-English speaking background customers,” Ms Menda said.
“Many from Ethiopia who have come to Australia don’t speak English, and even if they speak English or understand English, when they go to hospitals and immigration, they don’t know how to express themselves,” she said.
“What I see all the time in our local community is that it is very short [of people who speak English] in any culture,” said Ms Tesema, who lives in Sunshine.
“And so I’d like to help them,” she said.
