The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) recognizes that both equality and the human rights of deaf people depend on their access to sign language - the right to acquire sign language as early as possible, to receive education through the medium of sign language, to access services in sign language and through professional sign language interpretation, and to be able to engage fully in society and in all spheres of life.
Even today, deaf people all around the world, including in Malawi, face linguistic discrimination and serious barriers in accessing education, services and employment due to negative attitudes towards sign language, its low status as well as a lack of information regarding it.
Since the 1960’s, there has been increasingly modern research on sign languages, which shows evidence for the properties of natural languages throughout the world (see Johnston & Schembri 2007: 21); this confirms that sign languages are full, natural languages like spoken languages. They are the mother tongue of deaf people, as well as many hearing people (e.g., children of deaf parents, or CODA for short), and there are hundreds of sign languages around the world. In recent years, more and more sign languages have been offered official recognition by various states. The CRPD is also the first international human rights treaty to recognize sign languages as being equal in value to spoken languages.
The CRPD emphasizes the importance of international cooperation between different countries. MANAD and the Finnish Association of the Deaf have cooperated closely for over a decade. The cooperation has consisted of building capacity, raising awareness, and the advocacy work of MANAD both on a national and local level, among others. Since 2017, the cooperation has focused on sign language work (SLW) and the research and documentation of Malawian Sign Language (MSL), and the result, the MSL dictionary, is the first of its kind in Malawi.
Earlier, some members of the hearing community in Malawi relentlessly attempted to compile a dictionary without the proper involvement of the deaf community in data collection and verification. Eventually, the publication of this dictionary never succeeded. In order to truly promote the human rights of deaf people, the approach must be deaf-led and community-based. It must include deaf people themselves in the work – in accordance with the philosophy “Nothing about us, without us!”. This has been the leading guideline while compiling the MSL dictionary. By following good ethical research practices through participatory methods, our chosen approach has also raised the linguistic awareness, capacities and skills of the Malawian deaf community, which is of major importance for their empowerment.
The MSL dictionary has several functions (e.g., Hoyer 2013; FAD & WFD 2015). Primarily, it can be seen as a symbol of the existence of MSL and its users, enhancing the legal status of MSL. The MSL dictionary can also be applied as scientific data for further sign language research. Language research is also needed in order to develop teaching materials for the education sector. Sign language interpreters can only be professionally trained when there is enough detailed knowledge of the structure of the sign language. The dictionary will surely serve as a learning aid for anyone, such as the parents of deaf children or students of interpretation, who wish to learn MSL.
A study conducted by MANAD in 2009 found that the hearing community in Malawi did not know much about sign language and it was seemingly regarded as being inferior to the spoken language of Malawi. With this first edition of the Malawian sign language dictionary, MANAD is willing to implore Malawi society to embrace its diversity, so that in the near future deaf people will also be able to share all of their potential for the enrichment of society.
The Malawian government has paid growing attention to deaf people’s linguistic rights. There is now sign language interpretation on the news broadcasts of the Malawi Broadcast Corporation, and various ministries have supported and participated in various deaf awareness activities during recent years. Still, the most recent governments of Malawi have been criticized by the UN CRPD committee, especially for inadequate implementation of the rights of people with disabilities and a lack of monitoring mechanisms in realization of these rights. This also applies to deaf people, who still experience serious discrimination and lack of adequate and/or equal access to various services, employment and education in Malawi.
Common misconceptions
Signed language is based on visual–gestural modality, where a message is received by visual perception and produced by the hands, body, facial expressions and head. There are still a lot of misconceptions and misinformation concerning the basic features and facts about sign languages, even in deaf communities. Those relevant to Malawian context are counterclaimed in the following (see also Johnston & Schembri 2007; FAD & WFD 2015):
There are also misconceptions about deafness, or hearing-related disability. Misconceptions regarding deafness may be a part of more general misconception primarily concerning disability. Here are a few of them:
Malawi National Association of the Deaf (MANAD)
Malawi National Association of the Deaf (MANAD) is a deaf-led organization and a member of the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD). The organization was established in 1992 with the objective of promoting deaf people’s human and linguistic rights in Malawi.
Promotion of the linguistic rights of deaf people is major focus of the advocacy work of MANAD. The development of the status of sign language in Malawi is closely linked to various articles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), of which Malawi is a signatory. Malawi signed the CRPD in 2007 and ratified it on 27th August 2009. This affirmed Malawi's commitment to improve the situation of those with disabilities in the country.
Besides the overall capacity building and advocacy work of the organization, over the past decade MANAD has also concentrated on various deaf and sign language awareness campaigns, sign language training for interpreters and various service providers, sharing HIV/AIDS and SRHR information among deaf people, empowering the deaf youth and women of the organization, among others.
One of the major goals of MANAD has also been to establish local deaf communities and clubs around Malawi. As a result of intensive outreach work and leadership training, MANAD currently has 29 branches and over 12,000 registered members, covering all the districts of Malawi and truly representing the deaf community of Malawi nationwide. A significant amount of deaf people have been able to overcome isolation by joining in social events amongst deaf communities. Still, according to Malawi National Statistical Office, based on the 2018 Malawi Population and Housing Census, there are approximately 377,790 people with hearing difficulties (both deaf and hard of hearing) in Malawi. This means that huge numbers of deaf people still live in isolation and out of the reach of MANAD.
Since its establishment, MANAD has been actively involved in international cooperation. It has participated in international conferences, workshops, and seminars for the deaf, and joined the global deaf community in commemorating International Week of the Deaf and International Day of Sign Languages on 23rd September. The Finnish Association of the Deaf (FAD) has been the most long-term partner of MANAD. Supported by the development cooperation funding of the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, FAD has cooperated with MANAD since 2009. With this project-specific and program support, MANAD has also been able to maintain its permanent secretariat, which has been of major importance for the sustainable development of MANAD.
History of Sign Language in Malawi
The history of sign language in Malawi dates back at least as far as deaf education in Malawi itself. The first school for the deaf in Malawi was established in Maryview in the Chiradzulu district in 1968, followed by another six schools for the deaf. Like other sign languages, MSL was not artificially invented by anybody, but has naturally emerged among deaf people within deaf communities and schools (see Johnston & Schembri 2007: 19). Some signs of MSL have possibly come from other sources, such as other sign languages, or signs or gestures that were used among family members at home.
In fact, in Malawi and many other countries, most deaf people are born to hearing parents who do not know sign language and are unable to pass their knowledge of the language onto their deaf child. In order to communicate, deaf children and hearing parents often resort to creating and using their own home signs or gestures. As a result, children come to schools with some gestures or signs. Those children, if they are able to enter deaf schools, will learn sign language having been exposed to a sign language environment. Thus, deaf schools usually play an important role in the fact that the vocabulary and grammar of sign language are usually transmitted from generation to generation through communication among deaf pupils and possibly with teachers and other school employees. Interestingly, according to some reports by Malawian deaf people, however, sign language was already used to some extent before the establishment of the first deaf school. This surely deserves some further research.
On the darker side of the history of deaf education, in Malawi as in plenty of other countries around the world, oralism was supported by school authorities and societies. Oralism is based on the idea that spoken language is superior to signed and is defined as a system of teaching that prefers the use of speech and lip-reading, and on occasion even prohibits the use of sign language. Hence, in Malawi as well, deaf children had to use sign language in secret and behind the backs of teachers and even members of the mainstream community. Despite this, most deaf people continued to use sign language in private settings, and the language flourished in deaf communities and schools for the deaf.
Like most natural languages, Malawian Sign Language is not monolithic nor static, but a relatively alive language. The dictionary research team found out that there are some variants of signs within Malawian Sign Language. The difference in signs is partly due to the fact that deaf children studying in different schools for the deaf had previously developed their own signs. For instance, most deaf adults based in Northern Malawi use signs that originate from the Embangweni School for the deaf. Some varieties may be based on regional or age-related factors. However, signs do not vary considerably in Malawi, since deaf people coming from different regions have a high degree of mutual understanding. Therefore, one can draw a provisional conclusion that there is only one sign language in Malawi.
Additionally, the establishment of 29 branches of MANAD all around Malawi has been an important factor in language development. Deaf people started to meet with each other more and more frequently within and across various districts in more or less formal events. Signs were and are learnt, borrowed, and emerging. It is an unavoidable consequence that emerging branches have also increased the number of sign language users and the enhanced vocabulary of MSL.
It is obvious that MSL also includes several borrowed signs, which originated in American Sign Language (ASL). There are apparently various explanations as to how signs from ASL came to become a part of MSL. According to information from some deaf people, several ASL signs came to Maryview deaf school right after its establishment through a teacher who visited the Gallaudet, the first university for the deaf in the world. Also, American Jehovah’s Witnesses have through the years worked with Malawian deaf people using American Sign Language. Furthermore, signs may have been borrowed from other countries in Africa when some members of MANAD and sign language interpreters began to travel abroad and encounter deaf people from other countries. However, today Malawian signs are increasingly predominant – probably due to increasing language awareness in the MSL community.
Currently, sign language is widely used in Malawi. Deaf people use sign language openly, in schools and clubs in districts all over Malawi. As most deaf couples have hearing children, there is an increasing number of bilingual CODAs (Children of Deaf Adults) whose mother tongue is sign language, but who are using spoken language(s) at the same time. Also, general interest in MSL is increasing in society among hearing people who wish to learn sign language. MANAD and some other organizations provide sign language courses in various districts. This increasing interest has clearly resulted from the growing awareness and active work of MANAD, and its cooperation projects with various national and international parties. From now on, the publication of the first MSL dictionary will unquestioningly have a far-reaching impact on the development and status of MSL.
Moreover, MSL is mentioned in the Disability Act of 2012, Section 8.f., enacted by Malawi government, as follows: “Developing a Malawian sign language as a national language for those with hearing impairment and recognizing it as an official language”. However, at the present moment while writing this, the mention and status of MSL in laws, acts, and policies requires much improvement. For instance, the suffix ‘-ing’ used in the Disability Act allows an interpretation that the recognition of MSL is under process. Hopefully, the MSL dictionary will encourage the Malawian government to recognize and enhance MSL both in legislation and in practice.
Sign Language Dictionary Work in Malawi
Starting in 2017, the focus between the long-term cooperation of MANAD and FAD was set on Sign Language Dictionary Work and on the research and documentation of Malawian Sign Language. The Finnish Association of the Deaf has implemented development projects with various National Deaf Associations and deaf communities around the world for over 30 years. This work has mainly concentrated on organizational and management training, advocacy work, linguistic training, language research through sign language documentation and description, and sign language interpreter training. Lessons learned from the cooperation, in particular with the Albanian Deaf Association since 2003 and Kosovar Deaf Association since 2006, are gathered in Working Together - Manual for Sign Language work within Development Work (FAD & WFD 2015). Following the guidelines set by the World Federation of the Deaf and in accordance with CRPD, the Manual follows the ethical guidelines and examples of how to implement Sign Language Work in a sustainable way. The best practices and experience both from Albania and Kosovo and the spirit and main principles set out in the Manual were used while planning and conducting the work in Malawi, but naturally the context of the Malawian community, specific circumstances and culture were accommodated during all stages of the work.
In Malawi, the dictionary work involved the following stages: recruitment of SLW research assistants (SLWRAs) and SLW group (SLWG), training SLWRAs, practical dictionary work, validating signs with SLWG, and designing the dictionary layout. From the beginning, work for the project was conducted by Malawian deaf people themselves, with support from the deaf linguistic advisor from Finland.
The recruitment process involved three stages. In the beginning, the MANAD secretariat and the advisor travelled to 18 MANAD branches and shared information about the upcoming job opportunities for the post of research assistants. There were 125 applicants for the multiple posts for research assistant altogether. Secondly, job interviews were successfully conducted by representatives of the MANAD secretariat and the board in Blantyre, Lilongwe, and Mzuzu with major emphasis set on systematic assessment and the scoring of job applicants’ sign language proficiency and their suitability for the post. In the end, the selection of the applicants was carefully conducted in accordance with the interview score sheet.
The aim of interviews was to recruit three fluent deaf signers for a full-time job at SLWRA and 15 deaf signers as members of the SLWG covering all three regions of Malawi. The major task of SLWRAs was to carry out the proper dictionary work, while the role of SLWG was to support SLWRAs and to represent the linguistic diversity of MSL in the work and in the meetings with SLWRAs, which were organized a few times a year. During the first stages of the project, SLWRAs received training on practical, theoretical, and ethical issues of the dictionary work provided by the linguistic advisor, which they for their part shared afterwards among the SLWG.
Data collection was carried out by the SLWRAs from 9th to 21st December 2018. In order to collect a representative sample of linguistic data and to aim to describe diversity and exhibit variation of MSL, the data, i.e. natural signing, was collected from 54 deaf participants through videotaped discussions/interviews in 19 districts. This covered all three regions of Malawi, namely Chitipa, Karonga, Nkhatabay, Rumphi, Mzuzu, Mzimba in the Northern region, Dowa, Mchinji, Lilongwe, Salima, Nkhotakota and Dedza in the Central region and Mulanje, Nsanje, Machinga, Phalombe, Blantyre, Chiradzulu and Thyolo in the Southern region.
The target participants of the interviews were Malawian deaf people with fluent MSL. Moreover, in order to describe the diversity of MSL, there was an attempt to balance the sample between various age groups, and gender. However, for practical and ethical reasons, the participants were all aged 18 or over. Fundamental principles of informed consent were followed during the whole process. All of the questions were clarified in person so that all participants understood that their participation was voluntary.
During the actual interviews, each participant had face-to-face discussions with one of the SLWRAs which was videotaped (recorded) at the same time. The conversation centered on themes concerning one’s biography, childhood, school experiences, life at home, working life, hobbies, and favorite free-time activities, such as sports, favorite foods, and village life.
After data collection, the filmed conversations were analyzed and coded into single signs with linguistic information regarding meaning, handshape, movement, articulation of place, and so on. The signs were validated by the SLWG in 2-3 annual meetings between SLWG and SLWRAs. This confirms that the documented signs and various dialectical variations are familiar and used in the deaf community in Malawi.
To create proper material for the dictionary, the validated signs were reproduced and photographed by the SLWRAs in the studio. While editing the photos, movement arrows were inserted into the photos, to show the way in which the signs are formed with movement. Moreover, the sample sentences based on these signs were video recorded, to exemplify how signs are produced in sentences.
In the end, the dictionary signs were grouped and arranged into themes of similar meanings in such a way that is relevant from the perspective of the learner. Eventually, the layout work of the dictionary was designed by the IT expert from Finland.
The first sign language dictionary of Malawi has 16 themes, 486 signs and 107 videos, including single signs, and simple and more complex sentences. The list of themes is as following:
The whole process of compiling this sign language dictionary has been followed by the National Committee on Research Ethics in the Social Sciences and Humanities (NCRSH) of Malawi. The research proposal and periodic progress reports have been submitted to NCRSH, which have granted permission to continue the work according to plans. The follow-up of NCRSH has certified that all the ethical requirements and aspects of data collection and research have been followed as stipulated by legislation in Malawi. NCRSH granted permission to do the research (research project identity number P.06/18/283).
Now that after three years of hard work, the first edition of the Malawian Sign Language dictionary is available, one must remember that the work is not complete. Even the vast data collected for this dictionary has not been completely analyzed and coded. MANAD and its stakeholders must ensure that dictionary work will go on, and that enough resources will be available to make the work sustainable and successful.