英语听力—环球英语 896 Child Marriage in Yemen

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I’m Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand - no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
A girl sits in a hall at the local court. She is only ten years old. She waits quietly. People hurry past her. They do not notice her. They do not know that this little girl is about to make history. Her name is Nujood Ali.
Voice 2
Ali waits on the bench for half a day. Finally, someone stops to ask her why she is waiting. She says,
Voice 3
“I came to get a divorce².”
Voice 1
The court did permit³ Ali to divorce her husband. The year was 2008. Ali was the youngest person permitted⁴ to end her marriage by divorce in the world. Child marriages happen in many countries. The young girls become brides before they are ready. And many child brides do not ever get the chance to get a divorce like Ali. But there are ways people can stop the problem of child marriages. Today’s Spotlight is on child marriage, in Yemen and around the world.
Voice 2
Ali grew up in Yemen. She lived with her family outside the city of Sana’a. When she was ten years old, her father sold her to be married. Ali’s new husband was much older - he was in his thirties.
Voice 1
After they married, Ali suffered. Her husband was very violent⁵. He forced her to have sex. Her husband’s parents also beat her. Ali knew she did not want to be married any more. She knew she wanted a divorce.
Voice 2
Two months later, Ali escaped. A female⁶ relative gave Ali money to travel to the court. After arriving, Ali waited at the court for half a day. A judge finally asked her why she was there. He listened to her story and wanted to help her.
Voice 1
The judge brought Ali to a lawyer named Shada Nasser. As a lawyer, Nasser defends people in court. In particular, her goal is to defend the rights of women. Nasser knew she wanted to help Ali.
Voice 2
Nasser told Ali’s story in court. She told the judge about Ali’s husband. She told him about the beatings, and forced sex. And the judge decided⁷ that Ali was permitted to end her marriage.
Voice 1
After her divorce, Nujood Ali wrote a book about her experience. A French writer helped her tell her story. Ali wanted to encourage other child brides who might have the same problems. The book became a bestseller. Millions of people wanted to read her amazing story.
Voice 2
Ali was a child bride. But she is not alone. In Yemen, child marriage is common. Yemen’s Ministry⁸ of Social Affairs is a government group. It collects information about society. It says that 25 percent of girls in Yemen marry before the age of 15. The Yemen Times newspaper reports that some girls are married as young as eight. Yemeni law does not permit marriage for girls younger than 15. However, many marriages happen in secret. People pay police bribes⁹ so that the police do not report the marriages. But why are so many young girls married so young?
Voice 1
In some cultures, like in Yemen, it is traditional for young girls to marry. People see marriage as an honour. An unmarried¹⁰ woman is shameful¹¹ for her family. And sometimes parents want their daughter to marry at a young age. They think this is the best choice for their child. That is because they believe that marriage means¹² that the girl will have what she needs. A husband can provide food, clothing, and a home. He can protect her from danger.
Voice 2
However, some parents sell their children into marriage. In these cases usually the parents are very poor. They have no money to care for their children. They may sell a daughter to a much older man. They make money from this sale. They also no longer need to care for their daughter. The husband provides for the new bride.
Voice 1
Marriage also connects two families together. Poor families want to have a child marry someone with more money. This improves a family’s social position. The marriage is good for the whole family. The parents believe that they gain honour because of this marriage. However in these situations, the daughter does not have a choice. She may not even know about the marriage before it happens. She has no time to prepare.
Voice 2
Another reason young girls get married is that many older men want younger brides. The bride may even be a man’s second or third wife. The men want to have many children. Many child brides become pregnant¹³ at a very young age. A young bride might give birth to her first child at twelve years old. She is able to have many children while she is still young. But pregnancy¹⁴ at such a young age is dangerous. Young mothers have a higher risk of death in childbirth. And their babies are also at risk for serious problems, and even death.
Voice 1
Usually the husbands force their young wives to have sex. The husband wants to have sex with his wife to gain honour. It would shame his family if he did not. Sometimes the sex is violent. A husband may also beat his wife if she does not want to have sex. However, sex at this young age can also cause terrible damage to a girl’s body. For these reasons, and more, child marriage is usually not legal¹⁵. However, the tradition continues.
Voice 2
Child marriage is not just a problem in Yemen. It is a problem in many different cultures and religions around the world. There are many organizations working to end the tradition of child brides. One important organization is the International Center on Research for Women, or ICRW. The ICRW works¹⁶ with organizations around the world to improve the lives of women.
Voice 1
According¹⁷ to the ICRW, one of the most important ways to prevent child marriage is education. This means education for the community, and for girls. When girls continue their education, they marry at older ages. But they can also help their communities. Many nations with a tradition of child brides are very poor. Education can end poverty¹⁸. Education means work. It means money. It means a future.
Voice 2
The most successful programs encourage girls to continue in school. But they also help communities understand why their daughters need an education. And these programs teach communities about the problems and dangers of child marriage. In countries like India, child marriage has greatly decreased through programs like these. Child marriage is not just a problem for girls. It is a problem for the whole community. And the whole community must work together to end it.
 

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 divorce   

n.离婚；分离；vi.离婚；vt.离婚；脱离

参考例句：

• Did he divorce his wife or did she divorce him?是他要和妻子离婚，还是妻子要和他离婚？
• None of us like the divorce of word and deed.我们都不喜欢言行不一。

3 permit   

n.许可证，许可，执照；vt.允许，容许；vi.容许

参考例句：

• The doctor will not permit mother up until her leg is better.在母亲的腿好些之前,医生不允许她起床。
• The soldiers had orders to permit no stranger through.士兵们接到命令不许任何陌生人通过。

4 permitted   

允许( permit的过去式和过去分词 )； 许可； 许用

参考例句：

• Radios are not permitted in the library. 图书馆内不许使用收音机。
• Entrance is permitted only on production of a ticket. 出示门票才可进入。

5 violent   

adj.暴力的，猛烈的，激烈的，极端的，凶暴的，歪曲的

参考例句：

• The madman was violent and had to be locked up.这个精神病患者很凶暴，不得不把他锁起来。
• They caught him and gave him a violent beating.他们抓住了他，把他狠狠打了一顿。

6 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

9 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

10 unmarried   

adj.未婚的，单身的

参考例句：

• Though he is forty,he is still unmarried.尽管他已经40岁了，但还是独身。
• I was still unmarried then.当时我还没有结婚。

11 shameful   

adj.可耻的，不道德的

参考例句：

• It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己，真不害臊。
• We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。

12 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

13 pregnant   

adj.怀孕的，怀胎的

参考例句：

• She is a pregnant woman.她是一名孕妇。
• She is pregnant with her first child.她怀了第一胎。

14 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

15 legal   

adj.法律的，依照法律的，合法的，法定的，正当的

参考例句：

• He is my legal adviser.他是我的法律顾问。
• This is partly a political and partly a legal question.这个问题部分是政治问题，部分是法律问题。

16 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

17 according   

adj.按照，根据

参考例句：

• According to the Bible we are all the seed of Adam.根据《圣经》所说的，我们都是亚当的后裔。
• We must cut our coat according to our cloth this year.今年我们必须学会量入为出。

18 poverty   

n.贫穷， 贫困， 贫乏， 缺少

参考例句：

• We must continue to war against poverty and disease.我们一定要继续同贫穷和疾病作斗争。
• He showed his poverty in his knowledge of agriculture.他表现出缺乏对农业知识的了解。