Thamsanqa Jantjie, the sign language interpreter accused of being ‘inept’ has defended his actions at the Nelson Mandela memorial service on Tuesday, saying that he is a proficient sign language interpreter but has schizophrenia and suffered an episode while on stage.
Mr Jantjie also claimed that he is a qualified interpreter for the ‘SA Interpreting’ agency and that his interpreting at many other events has been acceptable.
We reported today on a video from 2012 that shows Jantjie interpreting for President Jacob Zuma in a similar style to that which sparked controversy on Tuesday.
Extract from the London Evening Standard
Explaining his actions, Jantjie, 34, this morning claimed that a schizophrenic episode caused him to lose concentration while on stage at the FNB football stadium in Soweto.
He started hearing voices, he claimed, and hallucinating.
“There was nothing I could do”, he said, “I was alone in a very dangerous situation. I tried to control myself and not show the world what was going on. I am very sorry. It’s the situation I found myself in.”
Jantjie was interviewed by a local newspaper and this morning went on local radio to defend himself.
“Life is unfair. This illness is unfair. Anyone who doesn’t understand this illness will think I’m just making this up.”
News of Jantjie’s mental illness may direct attention towards the organisers of the event, and a debate between SABC, the national broadcaster in South Africa, and the ANC over how the interpreter was allowed on stage and who was ultimately responsible.
See how we broke the ‘fake’ interpreter story to the world on Tuesday.
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Andy. Not him, me.
December 12, 2013
That does not explain the machine gun episode though. Unless he is having attacks every time?
As far as I know it is customary to avoid putting people with schizophrenia into high pressure situations for precisely the reason that it may trigger an episode. It’s unfair to the patient.
Linda Richards
December 12, 2013
Don’t you just love some of the pathetic turns of phrases being used on BBC News…. Jon Sopel! Like “Who signed the signer?” And the latest one “Who signed off on the signer?”
Linda Richards
December 12, 2013
He is very erudite about his ‘experience’ … Not a quality I would associate with someone who’d been through a schizophrenic episode….. One even he called “dangerous” …. Hey ho… Bet you MIND and other mental health charities will jump on the bandwagon to pump this story and talk about misunderstanding and mislabelling and stuff like that….. Let’s treat the guy for what he is… A fake …. And a faker ….
Linda Richards
December 12, 2013
Oh dear, the BBC are now using headlines on their news calling it ‘Mandela Sign Language’. It is anything but….! I know I’m taking it too literally but the unaware will call it that …. As the BBC have proved!
Monkey magic
December 12, 2013
I hope this doesn’t set a precedence for saying sorry, otherwise it might become fine for anyone to have a go at interpreting, just as long as they apologise for their performance afterwards!
Jacqui Ball
December 12, 2013
As a partially deaf mental health nurse, I would have to say that if Thamsanqa Jantjie states that he had a ‘psychotic episode’, he would be admitted into a mental health facility right now, no questions asked. If a client is psychotic, then they are a threat to themselves and to the community so who is he fooling, particularly standing next to Barak Obama. Although I am not denying that he has Schizophrenia/ Schizo-affective Disorder, he should have informed ANC/SABC immediately, and they have a duty of care to ensure that he and the distinguished guests are not at risk. Not only has ANC made a mockery of the deaf community but the mental health community as well.