Canberra has up to 400 deaf people who use Auslan sign language, yet only two fully certified Auslan interpreters live in the ACT.
Unless there’s an emergency (2019/20 bushfires and 2020 pandemic), the deaf community has no regular access to general, or Federal/ACT Government news (with the exception of a weekly 30-minute Auslan news broadcast on the ABC).
DeafACT secretary, Louise Irvine, said there was a dire need for more Auslan interpreters and teachers in Canberra.
“Most of the time for official announcements we have to get interpreters flown in from Sydney or Melbourne,” Louise said. “We’re trying to get interpreters for all official announcements, particularly anything to do with deaf people or the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). We’re trying to get the Legislative Assembly to do a weekly wrap-up of what’s happening, there’s a big demand.”
Auslan interpreters are only employed in the ACT Legislative Assembly if an MLA deems certain parliamentary business to be of interest to the deaf community, even though a Standing Order allows them to be there at any time.
In Federal Parliament, the only known examples of Auslan interpretation in the Senate are the valedictory speech of Senator Natasha Stott-Despoja and the maiden speeches of Independent Senator David Pocock and Greens Senator David Shoebridge.
The House of Representatives does not employ Auslan interpreters. Minister for NDIS, Bill Shorten MP, could not be reached for comment.
More than 16,000 people in Australia use Auslan (Australian Census).
“Unfortunately, regulations prevent having an interpreter on the floor of the House of Representatives or the Senate – they have to be located in either the public viewing area or in an onsite television studio ” Louise said.
“When politicians are doing ‘door stop’ interviews or live television interviews, it would be nice to have a weekly wrap-up of what’s happened in question time or the hot topics. Deaf people need to know what’s going on. How else are they going to find out?”
There are two fully-certified Auslan interpreters and seven certified provisional interpreters available to Canberra’s deaf community. Provisional interpreters cannot work in complex health, mental health or legal areas.
Of the seven certified provisional Interpreters, four work in the ACT education system with deaf and hard of hearing students, so they’re not always available to work in the wider deaf community.
In a recent ACT Government inquiry into Auslan services, the deaf community overwhelmingly wanted a centralised Deaf Unit in the ACT education system, so that Auslan teachers/interpreters didn’t have to travel from school to school.
““The teachers waste a lot of time driving around and they don’t have enough time with the actual kids,” Louise said.
The lengthy process to full certification takes years of practice, starting with a Certificate IV in Auslan, followed by a diploma in Auslan. A diploma in interpreting is then required before sitting a National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters exam.
At a tertiary level, there are three qualified Auslan teachers who are deaf, which Louise said created issues around the number of Auslan courses that could be run and supported.
Louise is about to start her Certificate III in Auslan. She hopes to complete her Certificate IV in Auslan next year.
DeafACT no longer has an office in Canberra due to its federal funding ending on June 30. Its website is www.deafact.org.au
