美国国家公共电台 NPR--Uganda lawmakers passed some of the harshest anti-gay legislation in the world

Uganda lawmakers passed some of the harshest anti-gay legislation in the world

Transcript¹

Uganda's parliament has passed sweeping² and brutal³ anti-LGBTQ+ legislation — drawing instant international outrage⁴.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The White House says it has grave concerns and may consider economic penalties for Uganda over extreme actions against people in the LGBTQ+ community. Lawmakers in the East African country have passed a bill to criminalize identifying as LGBTQ+ with penalties that include life imprisonment⁵ or even the death penalty. NPR's Emmanuel Akinwotu reports.

(SOUNDBITE OF CHEERING)

EMMANUEL AKINWOTU, BYLINE⁶: Loud cheers and celebration for the packed chamber⁷ of Uganda's Parliament. An overwhelming majority passed among the toughest anti-gay laws in the world late on Tuesday night, and ruling party MPs like Musa Ecweru echoed the sentiments of many in the chamber.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MUSA ECWERU: In our country, we will have our morals. We'll protect our children.

AKINWOTU: Same-sex acts were already criminal in Uganda under British colonial-era laws, but rhetoric⁸ by political and religious leaders has seen queer identity increasingly framed as a threat to family, with many spurious reports of young people being indoctrinated by gay ideology⁹. And on the streets of the capital, Kampala, many like Abdu Mukasa support stronger measures.

ABDU MUKASA: God created man and woman, and we cannot accept one sex to go on the same sex.

AKINWOTU: If signed into law by President Yoweri Museveni, same-sex relations would remain punishable with up to life imprisonment. So-called aggravated¹⁰ homosexuality, which includes sex with someone who has HIV, could incur¹¹ the death penalty. The law would also punish anyone who even identifies as gay or queer and, potentially, people or rights groups seen to promote or support LGBTQ+ identity.

RICHARD LUSIMBO: The LGBTQI community has basically been told, you can't raise your head. You can't be seen. You can't be heard.

AKINWOTU: Richard Lusimbo is a Ugandan activist¹² and says the legislation is a result of pressure, both from within and outside of the country.

LUSIMBO: From the very start, this whole bill coming into Uganda was because of the, for example, American evangelicals who would come to Uganda. And what's happening in Uganda is not just an isolation¹³.

AKINWOTU: A similar bill was struck down by the courts in 2014 on procedural grounds. This time, Museveni is again expected to adopt the law, and again, a legal challenge is likely to determine its fate.

Emmanuel Akinwotu, NPR News, Lagos.

(SOUNDBITE OF SOULAR ORDER'S "REPOSE")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

3 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

4 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

5 imprisonment   

n.关押，监禁，坐牢

参考例句：

• His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment.他的判决由死刑减为无期徒刑。
• He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for committing bigamy.他因为犯重婚罪被判入狱一年。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

8 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

9 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

10 aggravated   

使恶化( aggravate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使更严重； 激怒； 使恼火

参考例句：

• If he aggravated me any more I shall hit him. 假如他再激怒我，我就要揍他。
• Far from relieving my cough, the medicine aggravated it. 这药非但不镇咳，反而使我咳嗽得更厉害。

11 incur   

vt.招致，蒙受，遭遇

参考例句：

• Any costs that you incur will be reimbursed in full.你的所有花费都将全额付还。
• An enterprise has to incur certain costs and expenses in order to stay in business.一个企业为了维持营业,就不得不承担一定的费用和开支。

12 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。

13 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。