Impact case study database

The research produced a range of interrelated impacts, namely: it influenced the practice of public servants in the field of human rights; it provided new development opportunities for our NGO partners; it contributed to the public recognition, self-esteem and ongoing capacity building of the project’s female indigenous ad hoc interpreter participants. In order to understand the reach and significance of these impacts, Howard and her co-researchers conducted focus groups and interviews with the 15 ad hoc interpreters (Lima, 11 November 2018; Ayacucho, 7 August 2019; Puno, 9 August 2019) and with 4 members of the LUM team (Lima, 4 April 2019). The quotes in this section are extracts from these interactions, translated from Spanish and Quechua.

Impact is divided into 3 categories: a. Impact on Individuals; b. Impact on Policy; c. Impact on Public and Institutional Attitudes and Understanding. Proper names in this section are pseudonyms.

(a). Impact on individuals. Raising public visibility, self-esteem and opportunities for bilingual indigenous women leaders working as ad hoc interpreters for non-Spanish speaking people in rural Peru.

The 15 ad hoc interpreters emphasised that working with the project gave them a sense of empowerment and visibility with which to carry on their practice with renewed confidence: ‘We are no longer hidden like before; sometimes we feel weak within our organisations, but now we have the courage to stand up for ourselves and carry on’. They noted a snowballing effect among their peers: ‘This experience has made visible not just us but other women and men who do the same work as we do. We [the participant group] are just the “thin end of the wedge”, making the State realise that among Andean and Amazonian peoples there are individuals who provide this ( ad hoc interpreting) service voluntarily’ ( IMP4).

They also commented on how the project had made them aware of their linguistic rights: ‘Before, we were afraid to speak our [Quechua] language in public. [...] We were discriminated against because of it. Now, with the project, we have become aware of our rights, we talk Quechua in the bank, in the town hall, in the street. If people look at us, we carry on talking it’ ( IMP4).

For some, the project led them to language certification organised by the Ministry of Education: ‘Never in my life did I think that our Quechua language was important. And then when you brought the project about “interpreting” (...) I said to myself “Ah ok, without being professionals, we were interpreters”. (...) It was a surprise to me that without being a professional or having official documents in that field, they gave me a certificate for the Quechua I spoke’ ( IMP4).

Another participant attributes her professional growth to experience with the project: ‘It's because of that I believe that I was elected President of the Departmental Association of Peasant Women of Puno.’* Aurora describes herself as providing a role model for other women, using the USB recording of the project’s stageplay provided in order to extend the reach of her message: ‘“Look at comrade Aurora! Why can we not be like her?”’ she quotes them saying ( IMP4). *Clarification from President of SER: “Aurora was nominated President of the Organising Committee of the Association’s Annual Congress, November 2019; this is an influential Association at Department level and Aurora is an increasingly active member.” (E-mail to R. Howard, 8 September 2020).

Involvement in the project led to two participants benefitting personally and professionally via their acceptance onto the Ministry of Culture training course for indigenous interpreters ( IMP3; IMP10). As one of them expressed: ‘The project was an awakening for me, making me recognise my potential as a translator and interpreter, that this could bring me opportunities’. The training led to her qualifying both as interpreter and translator. Both participants now appear on the National Register of Indigenous Translators and Interpreters ( IMP10). Since the project’s end, the women have continued to build on this experience and extend its reach to others: ‘There's the opportunity to continue spreading the skills [we have acquired] to other women in our communities, so that they can take part in training courses, and continue growing over the next ten, fifteen, twenty years’ ( IMP4).

On a poignant note, one woman commented that the experience was cathartic for her: ‘When we gave our testimony [on camera] some of us shed tears as we remembered the difficulties we have had’. Yet she asked us not to edit the footage: ‘We need to show not only that we are strong but also that we have emotions when we remember the comrades who are no longer with us’ ( IMP4).

(b). Impact on Policy: The project influenced policymakers to include bilingual indigenous women leaders in formal judicial processes.

The project led directly to some of the ad hoc interpreters on the project being recruited by Peru's Ministry of Justice Commission with the task of registering Quechua- and Aymara-speaking victims of the 1990s forced sterilisation programme ( REVIESFO), thus helping ensure the rightful registration of victims. Howard and SER had co-convened a public debate on language rights in Ayacucho with panel members from the Ministry of Culture, the Ombudsman’s Office and the REVIESFO Commission (19 August 2016). The majority of attendees revealed that this panel was instrumental in making them aware of the forced sterilisation programme for the first time, and that, as a result, they now recognised the importance of language rights (29 audience questionnaires: IMP1). The REVIESFO Commission member described the lack of female interpreters in the hearings; a fact of which the researchers, the public and SER had been unaware. Shortly afterwards, on behalf of the REVIESFO Commission, the Ministry of Justice asked the Ministry of Culture to provide them with female interpreters familiar with the cultural and linguistic context. The Ministry of Culture, having learned about the ad hoc interpreters through the project, contacted SER, who, now understanding the need, identified 4 suitable interpreters from the group and wrote them letters of recommendation which led to their being hired by the Commission. For the President of SER, this sequence of events evidences the significant impact of Howard’s project on governmental practices ( IMP2, IMP3, IMP10).

Sara was one of those appointed to interpret on behalf of the Quechua speaking victims as they gave their testimonies: ‘On the back of this project, I worked as a Quechua interpreter for the REVIESFO commission [...] This was very important and very painful work... because (the witnesses) gave their testimonies of how they had been deceived into allowing themselves to have their fallopian tubes cut, and they told their stories in tears. [...] We were able to explain [to the commissioners] what the [indigenous] women were saying. [...] Our participation was very important because the women trusted us more than they trusted [the interpreters] they didn't know’ ( IMP4).

Other participants commented that, in the context of a sharp rise in feminicide cases in 2019, interpreting should also be provided ‘for the judicial authorities in general’ ( IMP4).

(c). Impact on Public and Institutional Attitudes and Understanding: The project educated the public on the importance of indigenous language rights and influenced the practice of a human rights institution.

The research process produced video and audio recordings, and photographs that became the basis for 3 public events in which the interpreters actively participated. These were: (1) An audio-visual exhibition entitled ‘ Companions: Indigenous translators for a more just society / Lugar de la Memoria, la Tolerancia y la Inclusión Social’, curated by Peru’s national Museum of Memory [LUM] (December 2018–March 2019); (2) A piece of testimonial theatre, ‘Women’s Voices’, based on their own words, created and performed with the high-profile Yuyachkani theatre company in Lima (10 November 2018); (3) A screening of the filmed theatre performance in Ayacucho and Puno (October 2019). To ensure the impact’s sustainability, the audio-visual material gathered has been housed in a uniquely designated SER collection in LUM’s ‘Truth Commission’ digital repository. These comprise a video interview, testimony, and a photograph of each of the 14 ad hoc interpreters.

Audience responses to the ‘Women’s Voices’ play, which was performed live in Lima (38 x exit questionnaires ( IMP5)) and watched on screen in Ayacucho and Puno (16 x post-it notes ( IMP6)), testify to the impact of the play’s message regarding linguistic human rights. The screening informed the regional public about linguistic human rights and visibilised the women leaders’ work in their home localities.

A focus group conducted by Howard and Co-I Andrade with the LUM team, who had curated the ‘Companions’ exhibition, revealed that the Newcastle project contributed new dimensions to their work: ‘The exhibition has been very timely, especially as we are currently in the UN International Year of Indigenous Languages and there is heightened public interest in revaluing native languages. We also try to make the connection between the period of violence and the fact that 75% of the victims were Quechua and Asháninka speakers. The exhibition helped us highlight the connection between speaking an indigenous language and vulnerability [...]’ ( LUM Executive Director). They also listened to the ad hoc interpreters’ comments as they were filmed viewing the museum’s permanent exhibition and found their own experiences of the internal war reflected in the interpreters’ comments: ‘it made a powerful impression on us’ ( LUM education officer). Further, they drew lessons for changing their future practice: ‘We realised that the exhibition participants should also take part in the round table discussion...this experience has taught us to be inclusive in our approach’ and: ‘We have learned that curating, museography and education have to go together’ ( LUM team member) ( IMP7, IMP8). Public reactions to the temporary ‘Companions’ exhibition are embedded in the more general Visitor’s Book and these reveal how the public came to understand the role of women in the struggle for human rights, including their role as ad hoc interpreters, during the period of terrorism itself and that period’s enduring aftermaths ( IMP9).

In summary then, this participatory action project provided the indigenous women participants with a life-changing experience that had considerable significance for their personal and professional growth. For the majority, this was the first time they had visited their nation’s capital where their engagement with this high-profile, internationally funded project provided them with a highly visible platform in Lima from which to collaborate with national cultural institutions. Through their theatrical performance, their exposure in the LUM exhibition space and their interactions with theatre professionals, they benefitted by acquiring new skills as well as gaining a life-enhancing sense of self-affirmation and an understanding of the broader significance of their—hitherto unrecognised—experience. The effect carries on, as testified by messages that reach Howard through their online networks, testifying that the positive impact of the Newcastle project on their lives continues. This project, therefore, enriched the lives of these women and created a ripple effect within their communities, enhancing their personal and professional standing within their local associations and with the NGO. Finally, the need for their experiences, linguistic identities and skills to be recognised, and the cultural-political healing that their work engenders has been brought to the awareness of the state, regional authorities and the public, thus ensuring the enduring visibility and voice of this community.