Greek foreign ministry sources on Friday responded to claims that a document in the “Novartis” investigation case file had been “doctored” by the foreign ministry’s translation service.
They noted that the translation system used by the ministry service was the same under both SYRIZA and New Democracy governments until August 31, 2021 and that this had outsourced some translation work to approved private-sector contractors.
The law passed in 2021, which abolished the old translation service and corrected previous problems, introduced a new system, which went into operation as of September 2021. This uses a body of certified translators and has created a series of failsafes to ensure accuracy and the quality of translation, which include keeping a fully backed up electronic archive of all translations carried out, among others.
The specific translation was done during the transition period from the previous to the new system, at a time when the translation service was only responsible for ratifying the translator’s signature and the latter was responsible for the accuracy of the translation, while no copies of the translation or the original were kept by anyone involved.
Concerning the specific case, the sources said, the foreign ministry will assist justice with every available means in order to fully shed light on the case.
SOURCE; ANA-MPA