VOA标准英语2013--A Step Towards Justice for One Kashmiri Family

 

A Step Towards Justice for One Kashmiri Family

SRINAGAR, INDIAN-KASHMIR — In what is being called an unprecedented¹ decision, a court in Indian-controlled Kashmir recently held police responsible for the killing³ of a 12-year-old boy in a 2010 attack.  The boy's family says the ruling gives hope for achieving justice and basic human rights in the disputed region.

Three years ago, Wamiq Farooq went out to play cricket and never came home.

Now, his parents and older brother Danish are only left with school photos, certificates and trophies⁴.

“He was really brilliant, seriously. I can’t explain how brilliant he was, how good of a student he was, seriously," Danish said. "I was really proud of him.”

Farooq says his 12-year-old brother was playing with his friends in Indian-Kashmir’s main town Srinagar when police officers drove by and threw a teargas shell. It struck the back of Wamiq’s head and killed him.

Witnesses say the attack was unprovoked, and in August, a local judge backed the family - issuing arrest warrants for the two officers for culpable⁵ homicide, saying police acted recklessly.

Kashmiri separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq says the ruling sets an important precedent².

“A commission of inquiry⁶ has to be sought into for all those killings⁷, all those fake encounters, all the police brutality⁸ that has happened over these years,” he said.

Wamiq Farooq was killed in January of 2010.  That year saw deadly clashes between security forces and stone-throwing protesters. At least 100 people were killed, mostly demonstrators who were shot by police.

Kashmir Inspector⁹ General of Police Abdul Ghani Mir says the deadly unrest of 2010 was a turning point for his force.

“The J&K [Jammu and Kashmir] has learned its lessons," he said. "In the last three years, 2011, 2012 and 2013, there have been protests, there has been stone pelting¹⁰, the incidents’ triggers have been there, these things have been there, but we have not seen that any killings have taken place during the protests because we have evolved our responses.”

Political scientist Radha Kumar was one of three government-appointed mediators sent to Kashmir following the violence of 2010.  She says there are fewer human rights violations¹¹ now than a decade ago, but the government still must address people’s grievances¹².

“Kashmiris showed a huge will in trying to put the events of 2010 behind them and move forward on tourism, economy and other issues.  But when you say ‘behind them,’ it doesn’t mean that you are giving up on justice,” she said.

Firdousa Farooq never gave up on justice for her son.

“This is not just a win for me, but for the entire Kashmir.  This is a win for all those who have experienced injustice¹³ and for those yet to come," she said. "Who knows how long this will go on?”

Her legal battle over, Firdousa Farooq returns to her now quiet Kashmir home, still longing¹⁴ to hear the footsteps of a little boy whose life was cut short. 

1 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

2 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 trophies   

n.（为竞赛获胜者颁发的）奖品( trophy的名词复数 )；奖杯；（尤指狩猎或战争中获得的）纪念品；（用于比赛或赛跑名称）奖

参考例句：

• His football trophies were prominently displayed in the kitchen. 他的足球奖杯陈列在厨房里显眼的位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The hunter kept the lion's skin and head as trophies. 这猎人保存狮子的皮和头作为纪念品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

5 culpable   

adj.有罪的，该受谴责的

参考例句：

• The judge found the man culpable.法官认为那个人有罪。
• Their decision to do nothing makes them culpable.他们不采取任何行动的决定使他们难辞其咎。

6 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

7 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

8 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

9 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

10 pelting   

微不足道的，无价值的，盛怒的

参考例句：

• The rain came pelting down. 倾盆大雨劈头盖脸地浇了下来。
• Hailstones of abuse were pelting him. 阵阵辱骂冰雹般地向他袭来。

11 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

12 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

14 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。