Bulacan uses Filipino in court trials
http://services.inquirer.net/mobile/09/08/21/html_output/xmlhtml/20090820-221129-xml.html
CITY OF MALOLOS—In this part of the country, everybody speaks Filipino in the courtroom. And it’s not because the country is observing Buwan ng Wikang Pambansa (National Language Month) or Linggo ng Wika (Language Week).
For 10 months now, selected courts in Bulacan have been using Filipino during trials and proceedings, not only to reach out to the masses but also to promote the national language, said Regional Trial Court Judge Ma. Resurreccion Ramos-Buhat.
“We celebrate Buwan ng Wikang Pambansa and we just want many Filipinos to know that Bulacan courts are using Filipino to preserve the national language,” Buhat said.
“Using Filipino captures the attention of the litigants. They manage to easily understand everything. It also lessens the time spent on trials because there are no more translations. There is more silence in my court because everybody understands what is going on and everybody listens,” she added.
Buhat admitted though that it wasn’t convenient to use Filipino because most lawyers were not used to it.
No subjects on Filipino legal terms
Besides, she added, law schools do not offer subjects that discuss legal terms in Filipino.
Aside from Buhat, Executive Judge Herminia Pasamba of Branch 81 and Judge Manuel Syangco of Branch 6 have been using Filipino in their hearings since October last year.
Chief Justice Reynato Puno ordered the use of Filipino in selected courts based on a proposal of Jose de la Rama, chair of the Supreme Court committee on linguistic commissions.
De la Rama, a retired Court of Appeals associate justice, said the use of Filipino in court proceedings would expedite the handling of cases because translators would no longer be needed.
“Using our national language will also allow the litigants to fully understand what is happening in the court. Transparency inside the court can be achieved more using our national language,” he said.
De la Peña said lawyers, prosecutors and judges may speak in Filipino when they question and cross-examine witnesses.
Longer words in Filipino
But lawyer Jeremiah Crisostomo of the Public Attorney’s Office here said that whether the use of Filipino could speed up court proceedings had yet to be ascertained.
Stenographers can take down notes also in Filipino, Buhat said.
However, some of them have complained of difficulty since Filipino words and sentences are longer than those in English, she said.
Lourdes Capulong, a stenographer, said she was often fascinated by Filipino words spoken by witnesses and their lawyers.
A lot more fun
“This makes me even more attentive. The courtroom is a lot more fun now. Hearings also appear to be more formal because they are addressing everyone in the court in Filipino,” she said.
Anna Maria Angela Garcia, an assistant prosecutor at the provincial prosecutor’s office, said one difficulty she had encountered was her inability to translate some legal terms in Filipino.
But she said the legal terms in English or Latin could be retained if there were no Filipino words for them.
Better understanding
Retired Justice Justo Torres Jr., Philippine Judicial Academy vice chancellor, said lawyers and judges should not necessarily translate all English words into Filipino because what was important was that all parties understand the proceedings better.
Judge Cesar Peralejo, a member of the Judicial and Bar Council, said law schools should include at least 24 units of Filipino subjects to acquaint aspiring lawyers.
National Artist Virgilio Almario, former dean of the College of Arts and Letters at the University of the Philippines, said the use of Filipino in court proceedings signified “full democracy in our courts.”
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