Premier Chen Chien-jen said that the Ministry of Interior has started to develop a pilot plan to improve the interpreter system, including strengthening judicial, public affairs, and foreign language consultation interpreters, among other things. This is in response to the fact that government ministries will train new immigrants to become interpreters, but the systems and practices of various ministries are not unified and perfected.
Legislators brought up the fact that the Judicial Yuan's interpreting personnel must complete 22 hours of training in order to provide interpretation services for new immigrants to Taiwan. They can keep their credentials for two years after completing the program. A $500 one-time payment is made to the interpreter, regardless of the amount of service hours rendered. The Ministry of the Interior's National Police Agency receives eight hours of training each week. Furthermore, Public Health Bureau of Chiayi City translators only require four hours of training in order to work in medical facilities. On the other hand, the reduced hours might not be sufficient to acquire vocabulary linked to the medical field.
The Ministry of the Interior will improve the interpreter training system.Photo reproduced from Pixabay
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Furthermore, the remuneration package is not quite clear, with options between NT$500 for a session and NT$300 per hour. Furthermore, labor health insurance does not presently cover interpreters. Minister of the Interior Lin Yu-chang stated that he has reached out to the New Residents Affairs Council due to this reason. In order to improve the interpretation system, they will first choose six languages—Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai, Burmese, Cambodian, and Filipino—and then hold a meeting to discuss it and report our findings to the Executive Yuan. Their focus will be on justice, public affairs, and foreign language consultation of interpreting instruction.
Eight hours are scheduled for professional training, while six hours are scheduled for basic instruction. Also, a certification and internship program will be under discussion. There will also be an increase in the price of interpreting services and a review of the issue of diverse needs among ministries.
