VOA标准英语2013--Indian Activists Say New Rape Law Falls Short

 

Indian Activists² Say New Rape³ Law Falls Short

 

Consider Purnima Rao, who has lived in New Delhi her entire life. She does not remember a time when she felt safe in the city, whether it was as a young girl or now as a 33-year-old filmmaker.

“You get stared at, you get abusive comments hurled⁴ at you, sexually abusive comments," Rao said. "If you get into any form of public transport and there are men around, they feel free to grope you, rub against you. It’s there everywhere, it’s there in the workplace, and with the colleagues you are supposed to trust.”

Rao never spoke⁵ out about what she and many other women suffer on a daily basis. And she says her silence was part of the problem.

She has since been compelled to join the protests that have taken place almost daily in the Indian capital after a young student was beaten and gang-raped aboard a bus on December 16. The 23-year-old victim later died of severe internal injuries in a Singapore hospital.

Six suspects have been charged with rape and murder and a government-appointed panel has recommended measures to protect women against harassment⁶ and violence.

But women’s rights activist¹ Saheba Farooqui says an ordinance⁷ approved Sunday by President Pranab Mukherjee on leaves out key recommendations by the commission - specifically, punishing those who commit marital⁸ rape and members of the Indian military who commit sexual assaults.

“We don't have any faith in the government because this is a typical type of government - to defuse the tensions, to defuse the pressures, just bring out some ordinance, bring out some commissions, bring out some other things. I don't think so, we don’t think so, I don’t think they are ready to bring a comprehensive bill.”

The government says the legislative⁹ process is far from over and that key issues will be addressed.

Purnima Rao says she only hopes leaders will follow through on their promises.

“I would like to see more action, a more sensitive reaction to what the women of this country and really what the men are saying, really, they just want basic human rights, so that is my hope.”

A hope shared by many who know change will likely be a long and uphill battle. 

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 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》

3 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

4 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 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。

6 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

7 ordinance   

n.法令；条令；条例

参考例句：

• The Ordinance of 1785 provided the first land grants for educational purposes.1785年法案为教育目的提供了第一批土地。
• The city passed an ordinance compelling all outdoor lighting to be switched off at 9.00 PM.该市通过一条法令强令晚上九点关闭一切室外照明。

8 marital   

adj.婚姻的，夫妻的

参考例句：

• Her son had no marital problems.她的儿子没有婚姻问题。
• I regret getting involved with my daughter's marital problems;all its done is to bring trouble about my ears.我后悔干涉我女儿的婚姻问题, 现在我所做的一切将给我带来无穷的烦恼。

9 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。