联合国秘书长潘基文2016年国际妇女节致辞

 　Message on International Women’s Day

　　国际妇女节致辞

　　“From the Glass Ceiling to a Carpet of Shards¹”

　　“把玻璃天花板打得粉碎”

　　8 March 2016

　　2016年3月8日

　　As a boy growing up in post-war Korea, I remember asking about a tradition I observed: women going into labour would leave their shoes at the threshold and then look back in fear. “They are wondering if they will ever step into those shoes again,” my mother explained.

　　我在战后的韩国长大，小时候我注意到当地有这么一个传统：孕妇在进屋分娩之前，都先把鞋脱了放在门口，然后满脸害怕地回头看自己的鞋，我问妈妈这是为什么，妈妈解释道，“她们都担心自己能否活着再次穿上这鞋”。

　　More than a half-century later, the memory continues to haunt me. In poor parts of the world today, women still risk death in the process of giving life. Maternal² mortality is one of many preventable perils³. All too often, female babies are subjected to genital mutilation. Girls are attacked on their way to school. Women’s bodies are used as battlefields in wars. Widows are shunned⁴ and impoverished⁵.

　　半个多世纪已经过去，这一记忆依然在我脑海里挥之不去。当今世界，贫困地区的妇女依然可能因孕产而死亡。而这一风险其实是可以预防的。很多时候，女婴外阴遭到残割。女童在上学途中遭到袭击。妇女在战场上被用来当人肉盾牌。寡妇受到排斥，深陷贫穷。

　　We can only address these problems by empowering women as agents of change.

　　如要解决这些问题，必须增强妇女权能，让她们成为变革的推动者。

　　For more than nine years, I have put this philosophy into practice at the United Nations. We have shattered so many glass ceilings we created a carpet of shards. Now we are sweeping⁶ away the assumptions and bias⁷ of the past so women can advance across new frontiers.

　　九年多以来，我一直在联合国践行这一理念。我们已经打碎了很多玻璃天花板。并在继续扫除陋习和偏见，为妇女开辟新天地。

　　I appointed the first-ever female Force Commander of United Nations troops, and pushed women’s representation at the upper levels of our Organization to historic highs. Women are now leaders at the heart of peace and security – a realm that was once the exclusive province of men. When I arrived at the United Nations, there were no women leading our peace missions in the field. Now, nearly a quarter of all UN missions are headed by women – far from enough but still a vast improvement.

　　我任命了首位女性联合国部队指挥官，并将本组织高层的女性代表程度提高到了历史最高水平。甚至在曾专属于男性的和平与安全核心领域，妇女已经开始担任领导角色。在我初来联合国之时，外地和平特派团里没有女团长。如今，近四分之一的联合国特派团由妇女领导——这一数字还远远不够，但相比以前已有巨大进展。

　　I have signed nearly 150 letters of appointment to women in positions as Assistant Secretary-General or Under-Secretary-General. Some came from top government offices with international renown⁸, others have moved on to leadership positions in their home countries. All helped me prove how often a woman is the best person for a job.

　　我签署了近150份任命妇女担任助理秘书长或副秘书长的任用书。这些妇女有些来自享誉国际的政府高层办事处，有些已在本国担任领导职务。她们都证明了，妇女往往是众多职位的最佳人选。

　　To ensure that this very real progress is lasting⁹, we have built a new framework that holds the entire UN system accountable. Where once gender¹⁰ equality was seen as a laudable idea, now it is a firm policy. Before, gender sensitivity training was optional; now it is mandatory¹¹ for ever-greater numbers of UN staff. In the past, only a handful of UN budgets tracked resources for gender equality and women’s empowerment; now this is standard for nearly one in three, and counting.

　　为确保这一进展真正持久，我们设立了对整个联合国系统问责的新框架。曾经，性别平等仅被视为值得称道的理念，如今已成切实政策。曾经，性别敏感度培训仅是备选项，如今已成为越来越多联合国工作人员的必选项。曾经，仅为数不多的联合国预算跟踪促进性别平等和妇女赋权的资源;如今，近三分之一的预算将其作为标准，并且这一比例仍在上升。

　　Confucius taught that to put the world in order, we must begin in our own circles. Armed with proof of the value of women leaders at the United Nations, I have spoken out for women’s empowerment everywhere. In speeches at parliaments, universities and street rallies, in private talks with world leaders, in meetings with corporate¹² executives and in tough conversations with powerful men ruling rigidly¹³ patriarchal societies, I have insisted on women’s equality and urged measures to achieve it.

　　孔子曾言，修身齐家，而后治国平天下。妇女领袖在联合国的成就向全球证明了妇女的价值，我常常以此为例在世界各地倡导妇女赋权。在面向议会、大学和街头集会的致辞中，在与世界领导人的私下对话中，在与企业领袖的会面中，甚至在与僵化宗法社会的男性统治者的意见交锋中，我始终坚定地推崇性别平等，并敦促各方为实现这一目标而采取措施。

　　When I took office, there were nine parliaments in the world with no women. We helped to drive that number down to four. I launched the UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign in 2008; today, scores of leaders and ministers, hundreds parliamentarians and millions of individuals have added their names to the action call.

　　在我就任之初，全世界有九个议会没有妇女。在我们的推动下，这一数字降至四个。2008年，我发起了“联合国制止暴力侵害妇女行为联合运动”;如今数十名领导人和部长、数百名议员以及数百万人共同加入了这一行动呼吁。

　　I was the first man to sign our HeForShe campaign, and more than a million others have joined since. I stood with activists¹⁴ calling for the abandonment of female genital mutilation and celebrated¹⁵ when the General Assembly adopted its first-ever resolution supporting that goal. I am echoing the calls of many who know women can drive success in achieving our bold 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and advancing the Paris Agreement on climate change.

　　我带头签署了“男性促进女性权利”运动，此后100多万人参加了这一运动。我与有识之士一道呼吁摒弃残割女性生殖器官的陋习，并在大会通过首项支持该目标的决议时欢欣鼓舞。和许多人一样，我也坚信妇女有助于促进实现宏伟的2030年可持续发展议程并促进关于气候变化的巴黎协定，并呼吁让妇女参与其中。

　　On this International Women’s Day, I remain outraged¹⁶ by the denial of rights to women and girls – but I take heart from the people everywhere who act on the secure knowledge that women’s empowerment leads to society’s advancement¹⁷. Let us devote solid funding, courageous¹⁸ advocacy and unbending political will to achieving gender equality around the world. There is no greater investment in our common future.

　　值此国际妇女节，我对依然存在的剥夺妇女和女童权利的行为感到愤慨，同时，我对世界各地许多人民已意识到增强妇女权能有助于推动社会进步并已采取行动的现象感到欣慰。让我们提供可靠供资、大力宣传和坚定的政治意愿，实现全世界的性别平等。这是对我们共同的未来的最大投资。

 

1 shards   

n.（玻璃、金属或其他硬物的）尖利的碎片( shard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyewitnesses spoke of rocks and shards of glass flying in the air. 目击者称空中石块和玻璃碎片四溅。 来自辞典例句
• Ward, Josh Billings, and a host of others have survived only in scattered shards of humour. 沃德、比林斯和许多别的作家能够留传下来的只是些幽默的残章断简。 来自辞典例句

2 maternal   

adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的

参考例句：

• He is my maternal uncle.他是我舅舅。
• The sight of the hopeless little boy aroused her maternal instincts.那个绝望的小男孩的模样唤起了她的母性。

3 perils   

极大危险( peril的名词复数 )； 危险的事（或环境）

参考例句：

• The commander bade his men be undaunted in the face of perils. 指挥员命令他的战士要临危不惧。
• With how many more perils and disasters would he load himself? 他还要再冒多少风险和遭受多少灾难？

4 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

7 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

8 renown   

n.声誉，名望

参考例句：

• His renown has spread throughout the country.他的名声已传遍全国。
• She used to be a singer of some renown.她曾是位小有名气的歌手。

9 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

10 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

11 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

12 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

13 rigidly   

adv.刻板地，僵化地

参考例句：

• Life today is rigidly compartmentalized into work and leisure. 当今的生活被严格划分为工作和休闲两部分。
• The curriculum is rigidly prescribed from an early age. 自儿童时起即已开始有严格的课程设置。

14 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

16 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

17 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

18 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。