United Nations General Assembly adopts resolution on the role of professional translation initiated by Belarus

25 May 2017

25-05-2017

On May 24, 2017 during the visit to New York, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, Valentin Rybakov, attended a meeting of the UN General Assembly, at which the resolution “The role of professional translation in connecting nations and fostering peace, understanding and development” was adopted.

The development of the document was initiated by Belarus with the support of Azerbaijan. Twenty-seven UN member states co-sponsored the resolution.

When presenting the draft resolution, the Permanent Representative of Belarus to the United Nations, Andrei Dapkunas, noted the timeliness of the development of this document and its’ symbolic focus not on institutions and structures, but, first of all, on people on whom the success of the organisation depends.

The uniqueness of the resolution, in the opinion of the Head of the Belarusian Mission to the United Nations, not only in the first in the history of the United Nations recognition of translation and translators and interpreters as the main practical tool for strengthening and preserving multilingualism in the world, supporting cultural and linguistic diversity, but also in strengthening the role of translators and interpreters in strengthening international dialogue and building bridges of mutual understanding and trust between nations as opposed to “building walls”.

One of the main elements of the resolution is the proclamation of September 30 – the Saint Jerome Day, which is traditionally considered the patron of translators – the International Translation Day.

At the invitation of the Belarusian Mission, the heads of international translation organisations that for decades sought recognition from the UN of professional holiday of translators and interpreters took part in the General Assembly meeting.

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