Change of the Guard at Himpunan Penerjemah Indonesia

From: Translatio 2010 No. 4 / FIT Newsletter

On 16 October 2010, the Himpunan Penerjemah Indonesia (HPI), the national Association of Indonesian Translators and Interpreters, held its Tenth Congress in Jakarta and elected Djoko Rahadi Notowidigdo, better known in the industry as Eddie R. Notowidigdo, to succeed Hendarto Setiadi as the new president for a three-year term up to 2013. HPI was established in 1974 and in its early years consisted of book translators. During the course of time, in line with the increasing demand for diversity from the industry, its membership expanded to include translators and interpreters in a variety of specializations.

One of the outstanding achievements of HPI under the leadership of Hendarto Setiadi was the introduction of a national certification test (TSN) for translators and interpreters across the country. The first TSN took place in July 2010 and was attended by participants from Lampung (Sumatra), Jakarta, Malang (East Java), and even Singapore. TSN is a breakthrough on the national translation scene as a service that benefits both translators/interpreterts and the public. Before the introduction of TSN certification, there was only the Sworn Translator examination administered by Universitas Indonesia. This examination was only open to translators living in the greater Jakarta area.

Building on the success of Hendarto Setiadi and his team, the new management team under the presidency of Eddie Notowidigdo will continue administering the national certification exams for both translators and interpreters, implement nationwide training programs to enhance the knowledge and skills of translators and interpreters in general, set up branches throughout the country, and will focus on expanding the benefits to members by revamping HPI’s website to include a directory of Indonesian translators and interpreters that will be freely accessible by the public. This will provide the members with national and international exposure and may ultimately result in improving their welfare.

In addition the management is committed to maintaining membership of FIT and to participating in national and international events.

Association of Indonesian Translators and Interpreters (HPI)