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Visiting journalists use translation service June 01, 2005 ㅡ A 24-hour volunteer phone translation service is quickly gaining popularity among foreign journalists attending the largest gathering of professionals from the newspaper industry in Seoul. In front of the location of the 58th World Association of Newspaper (WAN) Congress being held in the COEX Convention Center in southern Seoul, a long line of people formed yesterday to receive a phone from the Before Babel Brigade (BBB). The BBB said it would lend out 500 mobile phones for free to WAN visitors. A credit card and a copy of a passport are required to borrow a phone. Users pay only for outgoing calls, the group said. With the phones, users can reach volunteer translators speaking 17 different languages including English, Japanese, Chinese, French, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, German, Malay and Portuguese. The BBB was established in 2002 for the Korea-Japan World Cup, and has helped foreign visitors during major events since then. But this is the first time that the group has loaned mobile phones to foreign visitors. The BBB said it would continue to lend the mobile phones for free at future events. by Lee Sang-bok