TRANSCRIPT:
More than 1 in five Australians speak a language other than English at home, according to the 2021 Census - and in New South Wales, it's more than one in four.
Assistant Police Commissioner Brett McFadden has worked in the southwest suburbs of Sydney.
He says that for police, interacting with people who don't speak fluent English is part of the job.
"We are recognised as one of the most multicultural communities on this planet. And every job we turn up to, the prospect of us dealing with a member of the community who speaks our language other than English is high. So we turn up to a job where the circumstances may be a bit difficult to understand, so ascertaining clarity in a very short period of time to try and work out who we need to support, who are the victims, who are the witnesses, and who may be the perpetrators or the offenders we need to be pursuing. It’s a real changer to get that information in a timely manner."
Now, New South Wales Police are turning to technology to improve communication between police and non-English speakers.
The Language Plus app contains recordings and text translations of more than 200 phrases commonly used by officers, in 29 languages.
Hany Mena from the Police Multicultural Advisory Council arrived in Australia seventeen years ago.
He says he couldn't speak a word of English - and believes the app will help other people in a similar situation.
"When I spoke, when I tried to explain anything, when I tried to say anything I couldn't. And then I said, what about a lot of people in the same situation like me, they try witness crime or they want to say anything and they couldn't actually. This app is very, very useful for police and for the community. Also, how many time I was witness to a small issue, police attend and because of the miscommunication and misunderstanding, this issue became bigger. But with this app, I believe it's going to be useful for everyone."
New South Wales Police Minister Yasmine Catley says the app was developed by Multicultural New South Wales in conjunction with communities and frontline officers, in what is the first app of its kind in Australia.
She says it was created with real translators, NOT artificial intelligence.
"These are actual phrases that the police use on a daily basis, like what is your date of birth? Could I see your license please? I am operating a breath testing program at the moment. Those things that police say day in, day out."
Last week the app was rolled out the mobile phones of 12,000 New South Wales police officers - and it has since been accessed by more than 1,500 of them.
Here is one officer demonstrating the app in Cantonese.
"To get you a medical perspective from an audio perspective, this is what is sounds like." / CANTONESE UNDUBBED / English: "Just like that."]]
As well as common phrases, the app allows officers access to a real-time interpreter from Multicultural New South Wales in a range of languages at any time or day.
Minister for Multiculturalism Steve Kamper says that's important for maintaining trust, especially with people who come from countries where confidence in authorities is low.
"What it is with a lot of people, who aren't across the English language, it's the fear when they are confronted by police. Once they're confronted by police, they've done something. It might be just a process or something simple, but they don't know that. And being able to break that down with a clean message at the start is so valuable. It's so valuable to keep that relationship too, and the trust relationship with the police, with our new communities."
Samantha Lee is the supervising solicitor with Redfern Legal Centre and handles complaints on police accountability from across the state.
She says while the app is a good step forward, non-English speakers also have the right to an interpreter if detained.
"If that person is arrested and taken into custody that the law does require the police to have an interpreter present at the police station and that is a right under the law."
Multicultural New South Wales says it believes the app will enable police to communicate with 85 per cent of culturally diverse communities in the state.
But it does not include any First Nations languages, even though Indigenous people are disproportionately represented in the justice system.
Still, New South Wales Police Minister Yasmine Catley says police want to work with multicultural communities.
"The last thing that police want is a barrier - and barriers can escalate and problems can occur. This app and this service that Multicultural New South Wales have provided is going to be a game changer."
For Samantha Lee, the app represents a positive step in relations with culturally diverse communities, but believes more needs to be done.
"We find through our cases that police are not tolerant and police can be quite racist or disrespectful towards people whose English is not their first language. So it's not just about this app and I hope that this is not just the end of the story it is much more than that."
