VOA慢速英语2019 新西兰启动枪支回购计划（在线收听）

New Zealand Reports Progress in Gun Buyback Program

New Zealand officials are reporting progress with a government program that pays citizens to give up their guns.

新西兰官员报告了一项政府计划的进展，该计划旨在回购公民的枪支。

The buyback program started six weeks ago. Gun owners can receive between 25 to 95 percent of the price of a new gun, depending on the condition of the weapon they turn in.

这项计划于六周前启动。拥枪者可获得新枪价格25%到95%的补偿，具体视上缴枪支的情况而定。

The program is meant to support new gun laws enacted after a March shooting that killed 51 people at two Islamic religious centers. The laws ban military-like guns.

今年3月，两处伊斯兰宗教中心发生枪击事件，造成51人死亡。该国明令禁止军用枪支。

Some New Zealand gun owners have criticized the ban, while others believe it is the best way to fight gun violence.

一些新西兰枪支拥有者批评这项禁令，而其他人则认为这是打击枪支暴力的最佳方式。

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told The Associated Press in July that most New Zealanders disagree with the U.S. model under which gun ownership is considered a constitutional right. The new laws in New Zealand state that gun ownership should be considered a privilege, not a right.

新西兰总理杰辛达·阿德恩（Jacinda Ardern）今年7月对美联社表示，大多数新西兰人不同意美国将拥有枪支视为宪法权利的模式。新西兰的新法律规定，拥有枪支应该被视为一种特权，而不是一种权利。

So far, owners have turned in more than 15,000 newly-banned weapons, as well as 64,000 related gun parts. In return, the government has paid out about $20 million. There is no clear target for the buyback program because the government has not kept records on the number of guns in the country.

到目前为止，拥枪者已经上缴了1.5万多件最近被禁的枪械，以及6.4万件相关枪支部件。作为回报，政府支付了约2000万美元的补偿金。由于政府没有记录该国的枪支数量，所以回购计划没有明确的目标。

Some estimates have suggested the total number of guns in New Zealand could be about 1.5 million. The estimated number of currently banned weapons is about 175,000. If these numbers are correct, it would mean less than 10 percent of banned guns have been turned in so far. Owners have until December 20 to turn over any banned weapons or possibly face charges.

据估计，新西兰的枪支总数约为150万支。目前被禁枪支的估计数量约为17.5万件。如果这些数据无误，这意味着到目前为止，上缴的被禁枪支只有不到10%。拥枪者必须在12月20日前交出所有被禁枪支，否则可能面临指控。

Some politicians and opponents say the buyback program unfairly targets law-obeying gun owners rather than criminals. But the country’s Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mike Clement, disagrees. Clement, a 40-year police veteran who heads the program, told the AP it has been working well so far.

一些政客和反对者表示，回购计划针对的不是罪犯，而是让守法拥枪者受到不公对待。但是警察副局长迈克·克莱门特不同意这种说法。负责该项目的克莱门特是一名有40年经验的警察。他告诉美联社，截至目前，这个项目进展良好。

After collecting the weapons, police use a machine to crush them before they are loaded onto trucks to be thrown away.

在收缴这些枪支后，警方用机器将其压碎，然后装上卡车扔掉。

One of the owners who showed up to a recent buyback event near the capital Wellington was Paul Campbell. He told the AP he has enjoyed target shooting since he was 10 years old. He came to turn in three banned weapons - an AR-15, an AR-10 and a gun made for military use in 1961.

最近，在首都惠灵顿附近举行回购活动中，保罗·坎贝尔（Paul Campbell）是拥枪者之一。他告诉美联社，他从10岁起开始喜欢射击。他上交了三件被禁武器——一架AR-15、一架AR-10和一把1961年制造的军用枪支。

Campbell said he disagreed with the ban, which he felt was an overreaction by the government to a single tragedy. “Nothing is going to stop crazy behavior when crazy shows up, except good watchfulness by society to see the cracks, to see the problems, to see problem people,” Campbell said. “This is a mental aberration, it’s not a behavior brought on by the object.”

坎贝尔表示，他不同意这项禁令，认为这是政府对某枪击悲剧的过度反应。坎贝尔表示：“当狂热分子出现时，没有什么能阻止他们疯狂的行为，只有社会保持敏锐的警惕，及时察觉，找出问题，识别可疑分子。”“这是一种精神失常，不是某种器械导致的行为。”

Michael Dowling is chairman of the country’s Council of Licensed Firearm Owners. He says gun owners have mixed reactions to the ban. He said some feel badly treated, although most were trying to obey the law. His organization does not agree with the ban and believes it could create a much bigger black market.

迈克尔·道林(Michael Dowling)是新西兰持枪者协会主席。他说，拥枪者对这项禁令反应不一。他说，一些人感觉受到了不公平对待，尽管大多数人都试图遵守法律。其所在的组织不同意这一禁令，并认为此举将衍生出一个规模更大的黑市。

Dowling told the AP that concerns among gun owners about how the program is being run “could mean a lot of firearms don’t get handed in.”

道林告诉美联社，拥枪者担忧这项计划的实施方式“可能意味着很多枪支无法上缴”。

Phillip Fee is a gun owner who came to hand in his Remington semi-automatic weapon. He told the AP he fully supports the ban, especially after the shootings. He said he thinks a lot of people want to become well-known or bring publicity to a cause, and that powerful weapons can give them an easy way to do that.

菲利浦·费（Phillip Fee）是一名拥枪者，他上缴了自己的雷明顿半自动手枪。他告诉美联社，他完全支持这项禁令，尤其是枪击事件发生以后。他表示，他认为很多人都想出名或吸引公众的视线，而杀伤性武器让他们更容易得逞。

“There are not too many things that you can take that number of lives with in such a short period of time,” he said. “So there has to be some form of control.”

他说:“能在这么短时间内杀害那么多人的武器可不多。”“所以必须进行枪支管控。”

In addition to about 250 buyback events planned over the next three months, police have also contacted dealers in an effort to collect weapons through them.

除了计划在未来三个月举行的约250场回购活动外，警方还联系了经销商，试图通过他们收缴武器。

Words in This Story

privilege – n. the chance to do something special or enjoyable

crazy – adj. very unusual

crack – n. a break or separation in something

aberration – n. a temporary change from what usually happens