(Berita (Info) Sastra) - Frankfurt Book Fair: Indonesia in rough waters

(Edith Koesoemawiria, Cologne, Germany | Opinion | Sat, June 21 2014, 1:52 PM)

As the Indonesian media is filled with news on the election, another piece of news has been neglected. Less than five months away from the Frankfurt Book Fair hand over ceremony from Finland this October, Indonesia has apparently changed its translation grant program.

Indonesia is set to be “Guest of Honor 2015” at the world’s largest book fair in Frankfurt. The hand over, at the end of this year’s fair, formally marks the last phase of Indonesia’s preparation.

One may be expecting that German publishers are already reading the translation drafts of showcased books, and that performers and speakers are refining their presentations. The ground preparation, such as programs, translation contracts, the reservation of venues, flights and hotels, would all have to be completed ahead of this.

Of course, this is a simplification. The preparation of every large event requires much more, such as exhibitors, participants, contractors, sub-contractors, donors and a myriad of issues. Indonesia’s participation in the Frankfurt Book Fair is no different.

Perhaps it is even more complex since this is an election year. But foremost, apparent delays in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing last year have real repercussions that have created even more difficult waters to navigate. Abrupt changes also create new questions and problems that need to be dealt with publicly.

Such a need returned to the forefront in the second week of June, when the Education and Culture Ministry first published its list of recommended books. The list — 16 pages long — includes 212 literary books, 37 non-literature titles, 31 children’s books and 24 comic books.

Besides small inconsistencies in categories, the foreword explains that Indonesian publishers can apply for this grant as long as they have the book’s copyright, a translator and a five page sample of the translation.

It was also written that authors could suggest to their publishers which translator they wished to work with. The deadline for applications was June 23.

It was somewhat of a surprise not to hear more questions about this. Perhaps the reason for this lies in the information flow after March. At the time, the fair’s national committee gave a press conference at the Leipzig Book Fair, pitching a breakthrough in translation grants that for the first time were being offered to translators.

Launched on their website, it was stated that Indonesia had set aside US$1 million for translations in 2014, with a rate of between 10 and 30 per page. The website explained the focus, eligibility, requirements, process and a link to an application form.

Germans and Indonesians with various expertise were fairly excited by it and sites dealing with Indonesia’s role as guest of honor were full of ideas and questions, which mostly evolved around procedures that seemed bound to trip up.

Translation fees were to be determined on proficiency and fully paid if the translator had a German publisher willing to publish the work. Was this a call for help, or simply a catch-22? Translators can merely offer their translations for viewing. Even if a German publisher liked a translation, it does not mean that they will buy the rights to publish it.

Generally, publishers want to read the whole manuscript before deciding, so does this mean translators are to do the full work, but get only a fraction of the fee?

Ergo, who would be on the teams determining the list of recommended books and the quality of German translations? Who is supposed to approach the German publishers? Can out-of-print books already published in German be reprinted? Who is responsible for answering these questions?

Months floated by with only hearsay information trickled down via informal channels. It did not help that the website link to the application form did not work for weeks. As the murkiness persisted, the questions emerged. Many supporters simply chose to wait for Indonesia’s next move. Perhaps with the intent to give more time, although a loss of interest was also possible. It is not their event.

Along with the last policy change on translation grants, several Indonesian writers and publishers began to contact German translators — sadly, besides the much lower fee than the minimum quoted in Leipzig, offering more questions that they themselves had no answers to.

How can we take care of the copyright on time? What happens to books on the recommended list, if an author has a translator, but is no longer in a contract with a publishing company? Does anyone know what books are already in translation? How many Indonesian books are supposed to be translated into German?

As difficult as it seems, open the information tap. Let it rush. Explain the policy change publicly.

Why, wherefore, how? All these questions need to be openly answered, be it on their English website or the Indonesian site of the Education and Culture Ministry’s language institution (Badan Bahasa).

Reach out. Tell the public where the preparations are at. Letting water stagnate and get muddy only turns people away.

This would be very unfortunate, since the Frankfurt Book Fair is a worthy event for Indonesia to present itself.

The writer is a freelance journalist, media trainer and translator living in Germany.




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Sumber : http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/06/21/frankfurt-book-fair-indonesia-rough-waters.html