The Practice of Translation and Interpreting During the Conflicts in the Former Yugoslavia (1991-1999)

This essay investigates translation and interpreting in a conflict situation, with specific reference to practice in the former Yugoslavia after the dislocation of the federal state in 1991. I examine the tasks that translators and interpreters were required to perform, and discuss the practical limitations on their role as mediators. Some of the recommendations and norms which are set out when translation and interpreting is taught will be confronted with examples drawn from the author’s own practice and experience, that of other professionals, and from media coverage.