VOA标准英语2008年-UN Devotes Day to Human Trafficking

By Barbara Schoetzau
New York
03 June 2008

The United Nations aimed the spotlight¹ on human trafficking Tuesday. From VOA's New York Bureau, correspondent Barbara Schoetzau reports the General Assembly devoted² the entire day to discussing the issue of forced labor³ and exploitation.

The United Nations estimates that at any given time 2 1/2 million people find themselves in situations that are defined as forced labor or sexual exploitation. Fifty-six percent, 1.4 million, are in Asia and the Pacific.

The global organization says human trafficking affects more than 160 nations that serve either as a source, a transit⁴ point or a destination.

General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim says the full-day debate on the issue is the first time the General Assembly has dealt with human trafficking in a comprehensive way.

"If there is an evil on earth which we are facing nowadays as nations and as peoples and individuals, then together with drug trafficking and illicit⁵ trade, it is human trafficking," he said.

According to figures from the International Labor Organization, the majority of trafficking victims are between the ages of 18 and 24. The United Nations Children Funds, UNICEF, estimates that 1.2 million children are trafficked each year. Another recent study says that 95 percent of trafficked people experience physical or sexual violence.
　

Ashley Judd

Actress Ashley Judd spoke⁶ to General Assembly in her capacity as a board member of Population Services International (P.S.I.), a group with health programs in 65 nations worldwide. She says she stumbled upon the issue of human trafficking while working with P.S.I.

"I have been to 12 countries worldwide and spent a great deal of time in brothels, slums, hospices, youth drop-in centers, in both public hospitals as well as rural clinics. It is very difficult to leave behind people I know are victims of human trafficking. I defy anyone to walk out of a brothel or to walk out of an orphanage⁷ leaving those people behind. So I have been making a series of sacred promises: I will never forget you' and 'I will tell your story.' I know that the unheard are helped when they are heard," he said.

UN studies show that the estimated annual global profit from trafficked people is almost $32 billion. Almost half of that is generated in industrialized economies.

The Foreign Affairs Minister of the United Arab Emirates Anwar Gargash says economically successful countries will always face problems such as human trafficking. He says the use of imported children as jockeys in camel racing⁹ first brought the issue to the fore⁸ in the UAE.

"We realized that tackling that problem means for us to look beyond what a traditional sport is. At the same time, to understand that we cannot tackle these issues except through international partnerships¹⁰. This is what we did with UNICEF. We are starting to tackle the other forms of human trafficking. Mostly what we have is the issue of sexual exploitation. We understand that it is not a stigma¹¹ to have human trafficking, but the stigma is not to do anything about it," he said.

So far, 116 nations have ratified¹² a UN protocol¹³ against trafficking, the only international agreement that addresses human trafficking as a crime. The Trafficking Protocol requires ratifying¹⁴ nations to criminalize human trafficking and help victims.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

5 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 orphanage   

n.孤儿院

参考例句：

• They dispensed new clothes to the children in the orphanage.他们把新衣服发给孤儿院的小孩们。
• They gave the proceeds of the sale to the orphanage.他们把销售的收入给了这家孤儿院。

8 fore   

adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部

参考例句：

• Your seat is in the fore part of the aircraft.你的座位在飞机的前部。
• I have the gift of fore knowledge.我能够未卜先知。

9 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

10 partnerships   

n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系

参考例句：

• Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。 来自辞典例句

11 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

12 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

13 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

14 ratifying   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They call their State Assembly a disgrace for ratifying the 35th. 他们把州议会通过的第35号修正案说成是可耻的行为。 来自辞典例句
• The Obama administration, unlike its predecessor, talks of ratifying the test-ban treaty. 该会议五年举办一次，回顾其间发生的事情。 来自互联网