VOA常速英语2015--索马里改善儿童生活状况

 

Somalia Aims to Improve Lives of Children 索马里改善儿童生活状况

MOGADISHU—

Somalia's president signed into law the Convention on the Rights of the Child on January 20. Somalia’s children continue to face daily challenges posed by conflict, displacement¹, malnutrition² and disease. One in seven die before reaching the age of five and fewer than half of the children attend school.

2015年1月20日，索马里总统签署了“儿童权利公约”，使之成为法律。索马里儿童每天面临冲突，颠沛流离，营养不良以及疾病带来的挑战，七个儿童中就有一人在五岁前死亡，上学的儿童不到一半。

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud officially ratified³ the convention on the rights of children at a ceremony held in a Mogadishu school.

索马里总统哈桑·谢赫·马哈茂德在摩加迪沙一所学校举行的仪式上，正式批准了这项儿童权利公约，

“We want our children to be leaders who can take on national and international responsibilities. Some of the children in front of me today will be among the leaders that take responsibility for the Somali nation and the world as well,” said the president.

马哈茂德总统说：“我们希望我们的儿童成为能够肩负国家和国际责任的领导者。我面前一些儿童将成为能够为索马里以及世界担当这种责任的领导者。”

Somalia is the 195th state party to sign the document. The convention articulates a set of universal rights to protect children. Among them is right to life, survival and development.

索马里成为签署这项公约的第195个国家。公约明确规定了保护儿童的一系列普世权利，其中包括生命权、生存权和发展权。

Decades of conflict in the East African nation have raised its child and maternal⁴ mortality rates to among the worst in the world. But with the recent signing, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has expressed hope that in the near future Somalia's government will be in a position to protect its own children.

连续数十年的冲突，使索马里成为世界上妇幼死亡率最高的国家之一。公约签署后，联合国儿童基金表示希望，索马里政府将能够保护好本国的儿童。

"UNICEF looks forward to working with the government to implement⁵ this Convention and work towards achieving key results on the protection of children's rights within the next two years. The next two years are actually key because as a government they will be submitting the first progress report of the implementation⁶ of this Convention,” said UNICEF Somalia country representative, Stephen Lauwerier.

联合国儿童基金驻索马里代表史蒂芬·劳沃里尔说：“联合国儿童基金会期待同索马里政府合作，落实这项公约，并且致力于未来两年内在保护儿童权利方面取得关键成果。今后两年实际上非常关键，因为作为一个政府，他们两年后将提交第一份履行公约的进展报告。”

According to U.N. figures, one in seven Somali children die before reaching the age of five, mostly from preventable illnesses, and only four in 10 children are in school.

联合国有关数字显示，七个索马里儿童当中就有一人五岁前夭折，大都死于可预防性疾病，每十个儿童中，只有四个能够上学。

Human rights activists⁷ in Mogadishu welcomed the signing as a positive step. Amina Arale of the Somali Women Development Center (SWDC) said the Somali government would now be held accountable for any violation⁸ against children.

摩加迪沙的人权活动人士对签署这项公约的积极步骤表示欢迎。索马里妇女发展中心的阿米娜·阿拉尔说， 索马里政府现在将要对任何针对儿童的犯罪行为负责。

“It’s the responsibility of the government to ensure the rights of children are protected. By signing the agreement, the government can be held accountable on any crime committed on children at the courts. The Somali children now have a golden opportunity and will have their rights protected,” she said.

她说：“政府有责任确保儿童的权利得到保护。签署这项协议，就能够在法庭上追究政府涉及到儿童的任何犯罪行为。索马里儿童现在获得了一个宝贵的时机，他们的权利将得到保护。”

Although implementing⁹ the accord will take time, the government said it would now work on drafting and adopting child-friendly policies and systems, implement measures to boost child survival, development, participation¹⁰ and protection, and provide regular reports on its progress to the U.N.'s Committee on the Rights of the Child.

 

落实这项公约需要时间，不过索马里政府表示，将努力起草和落实有利于儿童的政策和制度，落实促进儿童生存，参与和保护的有关措施，并且向联合国儿童权利委员会提交进展报告。

1 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

2 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

3 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。

4 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。

5 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

6 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

7 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》

8 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

9 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

10 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。