[WSIS CS-Plenary] Update stocktaking / MAJ stocktaking

[Martin Olivera]

El vie, 03-09-2004 a las 21:27, Elizabeth Carll, PhD escribió:
> Dear Martin,
> 
Dear Elizabeth,

> You have me at a disadvantage as I do not speak Spanish, only a few words,
> and obviously you appear to be bilingual in order to respond to my post.  If
> you only spoke Spanish then we would be a similar situation.
> 
> However, I used Babelfish to translate, which I know leaves a lot to be
> desired and am responding to the translation I pasted below my signature,
> which hopefully is somewhat accurate.
> 
> As with many international conferences and meetings including WSIS , most
> are conducted in English and some have translation.  While this may not be
> representative of the worlds population, it is how things evolved.  
It is so, but we, the non-native English speakers (but knowing English)
should act against it. All the non-English speakers should be defended
by us.

> Perhaps
> this is an area where funds from a private sector organization, dare I say
> such as a Microsoft without being stoned,
Perhaps I did not understand well your propòsal about Microsoft.
We may accept their support, but only using Libre Software, because I
like to view how the translator code is done. I should be sure if
Microsoft is translating what I am saying in a right way.
With proprietary software I could not be sure ever.

If Microsoft accepts to do that with Libre Software, we should be very
grateful for their support. I do not think they accept, but we may
ask...

>  would be acceptable as the value
> of the added communication at WSIS II may outweigh any concern about undue
> influence, etc. etc.  Just a suggestion.   Assuming of course if there would
> be an organization willing to fund translation equipment.
> 
It should not depend on "if there would be an organization willing to
fund". It is not just an extra detail, if WSIS could not support
language diversity, what kind of "Information Society" are we talking
about?
Ah, ok, a uniformized, exclusive one. Thanks, I'ĺl prefer the real
information society, qith all its omplexity and multicultural reality.

> As an aside, I am on the Interactive Media Committee of the DPI/NGO Planning
> Committee for the 2004 Annual NGO Conference being held at the UN in NY next
> week.  Recognizing the importance of multilingual communication, I made the
> recommendation of looking into hooking the website into the translation
> equipment/headsets to be able to translate the streaming video, interactive
> coverage, and dialogue that will be on the website.  While this had not been
> considered before, as technically some bugs still need to be worked out, the
> end result was that this is the first year that there is website coverage of
> the conference taking place in 3 languages:  English, French and Spanish.
> So there is progress in this direction, albeit somewhat slow.  Hopefully
> next year, the bugs will have been worked out.
CONGRATULATIONS! 
That is exactly what I am talking about, I support very much your
initiative.

> 
> I believe the suggestion has been made previously on the listserv for
> multilingual people to volunteer to translate, possibly for  a limited time.
> This would be of considerable help until funds could be raised for
> translation.
Sure, but asking for volunteers to translate and not defining WSIS funds
for this shows a conceptual error in the way of giving important to
cultural diversity in Information Society. It is not a matter of funds,
it is a matter of main concepts. 

Conmgratulations for your initiative about multilingual support.
> 
> Best regards,
> 
> Elizabeth
> 
> Dr. Elizabeth Carll
> Focal Point to WSIS
> International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies;
> Chair Media/ICT Working Group,
> NGO Committee on Mental Health, New York
> Tel: 1-631-754-2424
> Fax: 1-631-754-5032
> ecarll at optonline.net
> 
> Babel Fish Translation
> 
> In English:
> <<That good that you can understand it, Elizabeth. The civil society (if it
> is that such thing exists) has not been able to prevent that organizacion of
> the WSIS considers other languages appropriately in addition to the English.
> When my Argentine compatriot Beatriz Busaniche defendio in Geneva its right
> to expose in Spanish in first stage of the integral WSIS as of the Civil
> Society (I clarify that the Spanish is not a indeed minority language in the
> world, although nondeberiamos to discriminate either by mayorias and
> minorias), the organization of the WSIS not habia anticipated no form of
> translation. Everything was monkey-lingüe, in ingles. A shame for a forum
> that says to want to interpret and to regulate the new human forms of
> communication, and not even this prepared to handle the diversity of the
> traditional forms of communication as the speech.
> 
> Serious formidable to have translations for all post, and that each one
> writes in its maternal language and all understand in the hers own one, as
> your you say. While that does not exist, it does not have why to accept
> monocorde "international" english language like the unique option.>>
>