双语新闻：印度未能平等保护女性

2013-01-05 00:00:00来源：新东方网

　　India may be the world’s biggest democracy. But the brutalgang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student in New Delhireveal a darker side to modern India, where not all lives areconsidered equal.

　　印度或许是全球最大的民主国家，但一位23岁女大学生在新德里惨遭轮奸和杀害的事件暴露出现代印度黑暗的一面——在印度，并非所有人的生命都被视为平等。

　　The death of the girl known only by the pseudonym Amanat has touched a chord. Her appallinginjuries and the randomness of the attack have brought thousands out in spontaneous protestagainst a culture where abuse of women is too often tolerated by individuals, institutions andgovernment.

　　这位在报道中被化名为阿玛纳特(Amanat)的女子的死亡触动了人们的心弦。她遭受的骇人听闻的伤害以及这起施暴的随意性让数千人自发走上街头，抗议个人、社会和政府对虐待女性行为过分容忍的文化。

　　Though India’s constitution guarantees women equal rights and opportunities, in everyday life theyremain second-class citizens. More girls than boys die of malnutrition, and more are deprived ofmedicine and education. Discrimination begins even before birth. Abortions of female foetuses haveskyrocketed, especially among the better-educated middle classes. And, as more women enter theworkforce, violence against them is on the rise. Seven of the 10 fastest-growing crimes areagainst women; rape tops the list.

　　尽管印度宪法保障妇女享有同等权利和机会，但在日常生活中，她们仍属于二等公民。死于营养不良和缺乏药品以及被剥夺受教育权的女性数量均高于男性。性别歧视甚至从出生前就开始了。女胎流产数量飙升，特别是在受过较高等教育的中产阶层中间。随着更多女性加入劳动大军，针对她们的暴力活动在增加。在增长最快的10种犯罪中，有7种针对女性;强奸罪位列第一。

　　Many hope that the protests after Amanat’s death will prompt society to take sexual assault moreseriously. The government is now fast-tracking rape cases and broadening the definition of sexualassault. Yet the challenge is not simply to change the law, but to change attitudes. Politicians, inparticular, have been far too complacent about a society where misogyny remains endemic. Overthe past five years, political parties have presented close to 300 candidates for election who facedallegations of crimes against women. Six state legislators are currently facing rape charges. Thoughthe principle of innocent until proven guilty must be defended, these politicians should besuspended from their posts pending the outcome of investigations or trials.

　　很多人希望在阿玛纳特死后，抗议活动会促使社会更严肃看待性侵犯事件。印度政府现在正快速审理强奸案件，并扩大性侵犯的定义。然而，挑战不仅仅在于修订法律，更在于改变态度。特别值得一提的是，对于歧视女性现象依然普遍存在的社会，政界人士一直表现得过于自满。过去5年，各政党推出了近300名被控对女性犯罪的候选人参加选举。目前有6名邦议员被控强奸。尽管必须维护“无罪假定”原则，但这些政治人士应被暂停职务，等待调查或审判结果

　　The government has also been slow to tackle prejudice in institutions such as the police and healthservice, which commonly lay the blame for rape or assault on the victim. This needs to be stampedout. Finally, the culture of abuse can be eradicated only through public education. Boys and girlsmust be taught from the earliest age the value of their respective roles in society.

　　在消除警方、医疗服务等机构存在的偏见方面，印度政府一直行动缓慢。这类机构通常把强奸或性侵犯归咎于受害者。这种现象必须消除。最后，恶劣风气只能通过公共教育来根除。男性和女性必须在幼年时期就被教授各自社会角色的意义。

　　Amanat’s father said her dying words were: “I am sorry, Mummy.” Too often in India the victim ofabuse is shamed rather than her attacker. India’s political elite can begin the process of changingthat culture through institutional and educational reform. Only then can India rightfully claim to bea just society, as well as a free one.

　　阿玛纳特的父亲表示，她死前说道：“对不起，妈妈。”在印度，很多时候，在虐待事件过后感到羞愧的往往是受害者，而不是施暴者。印度的政治精英可以通过制度和教育改革，启动改变这种文化的过程。只有到那时，印度才可以正当的宣称自己是一个公平、自由的社会。

本文关键字: 双语时事