Mother Tongue: A Nuisance or A Developmental Tool? Case of Machakos Subordinate Court

Dr. Emma Mwende Mulwa
University of South Africa
mwendemulwa@gmail.com

Received December 31, 2020; Revised March 7, 2021; Accepted March 17, 2021

Abstract: Choosing the best language is the key to achieve any development goals. This article aims to explore languages used in subordinate courts and recommend intervening measures that will facilitate access to justice through appropriate language use in those courts in Machakos County, Kenya. The language policy excludes many of those that know only their indigenous languages. Some court users do not know English or /and Kiswahili, and interpreting is poorly done. A case study was conducted to examine these linguistic issues and challenges found in the subordinate courts and the opportunities that manifest themselves during court proceedings that can be utilized to access justice hence enable development. To evoke the respondent’s attitudes towards the languages available during court proceedings and interpreting as the solution to language barrier, questionnaires were administered to 13 defendants and defense council, 13 witnesses and 18 members of the public in the court. Interviews were conducted on 3 magistrates and 7 clerks/interpreters. The researcher observed court proceedings. Having used a mixed method, the data was triangulated. The findings show that not all the respondents were comfortable using English, Kiswahili or interpreting to attain justice. They preferred their mother tongues. Mother tongues are therefore not a nuisance, but a developmental tool. The respondents language attitudes are against restriction to use a particular language during a subordinate court proceeding. The study recommends promotion of mother tongues to official status within their resident counties hence allowing them to be used directly among English and Kiswahili in the subordinate
courts.