The U.S. Congress may be on holiday recess this week, but the debate over the Obama administration's plans to close the Guantanamo detention center continues. The topic dominated the Sunday news interview programs broadcast each week on major American television networks.
美国国会本星期可能是因假日而休会,但是围绕着奥巴马政府计划关闭关塔那摩湾拘留中心引发的争论仍在继续。这个议题是美国主要电视新闻网每星期天新闻采访节目的中心内容。
There are many opinions in Washington about the Guantanamo prison and how to deal with terror detainees.
华盛顿政界对于关闭关塔那摩湾和如何处理恐怖在押犯的问题有很多不同的意见。
But there is one point on which all sides agree: it is a complex issue, and one not easily resolved.
但是有一点是各方都一致认同的,那就是,这是一个错综复杂的问题,不是轻而易举就能得到解决的。
The nation's top military officer, Admiral Michael Mullen, supports closing the prison and says various options are being explored. He told ABC's This Week program that the Pentagon is working hard to meet President Obama's one-year deadline to close Guantanamo.
美军参谋长联席会议主席、海军上将马伦支持关闭关塔那摩湾监狱。他说,他们在考虑各种不同的看法。他对美国广播公司“本周”电视节目说,五角大楼正在努力工作,以达到奥巴马总统提出一年内关闭关塔那摩湾拘留中心的最后期限。
"There are some really bad people there and so figuring out how we are going to keep them where they need to be, keep them off the battlefield as well as close Gitmo [Guantanamo] itself, is a real challenge," said Admiral Mullen.
“那里的确关押着一些很坏的人,因此要想出办法,怎样把他们关押在他们该待的地方,让他们远离战场,同时要关闭关塔那摩湾拘留中心,这的确是个很大的挑战。”
Last week, the U.S. Senate joined the House of Representatives in voting to deny funds to shut down Guantanamo until the administration comes up with a detailed plan for handling the remaining detainees.
上星期,美国参议院和众议院都投票决定,在为奥巴马政府拿出一个处理余下在押犯的具体计划之前不为关闭关塔那摩湾拘留中心拨款。
Of particular concern is one category: detainees considered a severe threat, who for one reason or another cannot be prosecuted.
其中有一类在押犯值得特别关注,他们被认为是非常危险的在押犯,但却因为某种原因而不能被起诉。
The president has suggested some could be held at American high-security prisons. Republicans - like Senator John Kyl of Arizona - reject that idea. Kyl appeared on the Fox News Sunday program.
奥巴马建议,其中一些人可以被关押在戒备森严的美国监狱中。包括亚利桑那州参议员凯尔在内的共和党人反对这种想法。
"I do not know why it is better to have someone in a so-called "super-max" facility in, say Colorado, than it is to keep them in Guantanamo - a state of the art facility that we built not too long ago for the explicit purpose of holding these people," said Senator Kyl.
凯尔在福克斯星期天新闻节目上说:“我不知道为什么把某个人关押在所谓的‘超级严密’的设施中,如科罗拉多州的监狱中,要比把他们关押在关塔那摩湾拘留中心会更好。关塔那摩湾拘留中心是我们不久前特别为关押这些人而修建的专门设施。”
His Senate colleague, Dick Durbin of Illinois expressed a different view on NBC's Meet the Press.
凯尔的参议院同事、伊利诺伊州的参议员德宾在国家广播公司的“与新闻界见面”节目上表达了不同的看法。
"We have successfully tried terrorists in the United States," said Senator Durbin. As I sit here today, we have 347 convicted terrorists secure in our incarceration facilities. We know that they can be tried and held safely."
德宾说:“我们已经成功地在美国审讯了这些恐怖主义份子。到现在为止,347名被定罪的恐怖主义份子被牢牢地关押在我们的监禁设施中。我们知道他们会受到审判,并被安全地关押在那里。”
Former secretary of state Colin Powell, speaking on the CBS program Face the Nation, said setting up the Guantanamo prison was one of several steps taken after the September 11attacks to keep America safe.
前国务卿鲍威尔在哥伦比亚广播公司的“面对全国”的电视节目上说,设立关塔那摩湾监狱是9/11恐怖袭击发生后采取的一个步骤,目的是确保美国的安全。
He noted the Bush administration also wanted to shut down the facility, but was unable to come up with answers for all the legal questions involved.
他表示,布什政府也想关闭这个设施,但是由于涉及各种各样的法律问题,拿不出一个解决办法来。
"President Bush was not able to close Guantanamo on his watch and President Obama came in saying he would close Guantanamo and he has run into some of those same sorts of problems," said Colin Powell.
“布什总统当政期间无法关闭关塔那摩湾,现在奥巴马总统上任后说要关闭关塔那摩湾。他现在遇到了一些相同的问题。”
Powell said President Obama made a mistake by going to Capitol Hill for money to close Guantanamo without a detailed plan of action. But he predicted that in time, the debate will settle down, and lawmakers will get the specifics they want from the president.
鲍威尔说,奥巴马总统没有拿出一个具体的计划,就到国会为关闭关塔那摩湾寻求拨款,是个错误。但是他预计,过一段时间后,有关争论就会逐渐平息,议员们将从总统那里了解到他们希望知道的具体细节。 |