VOA慢速英语--俄罗斯议会否决反同性恋法律

AS IT IS 2016-01-20 Russian Parliament Rejects Anti-Gay Law 俄罗斯议会否决反同性恋法律

 Russia’s Parliament rejected a bill Monday that would have permitted fines or jail time for homosexual acts.

Rights groups have welcomed the move. But, they are also calling for a repeal¹ of a 2013 law that they say has encouraged discrimination against non-heterosexuals. It is called the “gay propaganda” law.

Communist Party lawmakers had proposed the law that was rejected. Had it passed, gay people could have been fined between $50 and $65 for public demonstrations² of affection. The proposed measure described such acts as "expression of non-traditional sexual relations." It could also have led to jail time depending on where the act took place.

Human Rights Watch denounced the bill. The group said the measure would have punished people for expressing their identity.

It was a rare win in Russia for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexual people, also known as LGBT.

Human Rights Watch's Russia Program Director in Moscow, Tanya Lokshina, praised the defeat of the measure in an email. "However,” she wrote, “the parliament has yet to repeal the 'gay propaganda' bill, which has done tremendous damage to Russia's LGBT people."

The 2013 measure outlaws³ the "promotion⁴ of non-traditional sexual relations among minors⁵." The law has received international criticism.

Lokshina says it also has led to increased numbers of attacks on the LGBT community in Russia.

Sandra is a transgender women living in Moscow. She told VOA that she was beaten in broad daylight after the law was passed. Her girlfriend called the police. Officers arrived quickly, she said, but were not willing to arrest her attackers. She said the attackers were not charged with any crime. She said the police insulted her instead.

President Vladimir Putin has defended the "gay propaganda law," saying it does not ban homosexuality. The chief of Russian state media once said the hearts of dead homosexuals should be burned instead of donated. He called them “unfit to live.”

LGBT activists⁸ continue their efforts for equal rights, however. Vladimir Komov, a Teachers' Union official, and engineer Dmitry Svetly are a gay couple living in Moscow.

"We're openly gay," says Komov.

"We're not hiding in fear," says Svetly, "For us, being open is a weapon."

Words in This Story

homosexual – n. a person who is attracted to others of the same gender⁷

heterosexual – n. a person who is attracted to others of the opposite gender

repeal – v. to take back

gay – n. homosexual

affection – n. warm feelings or fondess for something or someone

LGBT – adj. an acronym⁹ for Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender

minor⁶ – adj. slight, or younger

1 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

2 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

3 outlaws   

歹徒，亡命之徒( outlaw的名词复数 )； 逃犯

参考例句：

• During his year in the forest, Robin met many other outlaws. 在森林里的一年，罗宾遇见其他许多绿林大盗。
• I didn't have to leave the country or fight outlaws. 我不必离开自己的国家，也不必与不法分子斗争。

4 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

5 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

7 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。

8 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》

9 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。