国外媒体:塞内加尔宣判九名同性恋者无罪

今年一月，地方法院以"违反自然性行为"等罪名重判九名男子八年入狱刑期，这九名男子大多是塞内加尔国内同性恋者健康与权益活动团体的成员，其中包括一位较为知名的活动人士。这一判决受到联合国以及一些国际人权组织的关注和批评，国际社会谴责这一判决是侵犯同性恋者基本人权的又一案例，也将严重阻碍塞内加尔国内艾滋病预防工作的实施。

In a packed courtroom in downtown Dakar, the appeals court pardoned all nine defendants¹ and overturned charges of committing unnatural² acts and criminal conspiracy³.

Biram Sassoum Sy, who led the defense⁴ team, says the men are completely cleared of any crime or wrongdoing and the case will not be pursued. When they were apprehended⁵, arrested and sentenced, he says the law was broken at every step. The trial, he says, is invalid⁶ and they are free to go.

Most of the defendants worked for HIV/AIDS programs targeting men who have sex with men. They were arrested at the home of a prominent gay activist⁷ in December.

Sy says the police went to the defendant's house after neighbors tipped them off. The attorney says police arrested the men without a warrant and extorted⁸ a confession⁹ through bullying¹⁰ and harassment¹¹.

Senegalese law prohibits homosexual activity but requires that the suspect be caught in the act. A search warrant is also necessary if police are to enter a private home. Sy says the original judgment¹² was hasty and emotional, and correct legal procedure was not followed.

The maximum penalty for homosexual activity is five years. The sentencing judge in this case added another three years for criminal conspiracy. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission in Cape¹³ Town said no other African country has handed down such a severe sentence.

Despite the positive outcome of the appeal, AIDS activists¹⁴ in Senegal are concerned about the effect the trial will have on HIV programs serving men who have sex with men.

Daouda Diouf, director of community-led HIV programs at Enda Tiers Monde - an international non-profit organization based in Dakar, says AIDS work with homosexuals will take time to return to the level it was at before. He says the trial has created a lot of fear and the people working with this community feel threatened. It will take time to build up trust again, he says, so they can conduct HIV/AIDS activities without fearing for their safety.

Diouf says that if HIV is not controlled in vulnerable groups like the homosexual community, it will be impossible to manage the HIV epidemic¹⁵ in Senegal. These men, he says, are key players in the country's fight against HIV.

1 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

2 unnatural   

adj.不自然的；反常的

参考例句：

• Did her behaviour seem unnatural in any way?她有任何反常表现吗？
• She has an unnatural smile on her face.她脸上挂着做作的微笑。

3 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 apprehended   

逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解

参考例句：

• She apprehended the complicated law very quickly. 她很快理解了复杂的法律。
• The police apprehended the criminal. 警察逮捕了罪犯。

6 invalid   

n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的

参考例句：

• He will visit an invalid.他将要去看望一个病人。
• A passport that is out of date is invalid.护照过期是无效的。

7 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。

8 extorted   

v.敲诈( extort的过去式和过去分词 )；曲解

参考例句：

• The gang extorted money from over 30 local businesses. 这帮歹徒向当地30多户商家勒索过钱财。
• He extorted a promise from me. 他硬要我答应。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

9 confession   

n.自白，供认，承认

参考例句：

• Her confession was simply tantamount to a casual explanation.她的自白简直等于一篇即席说明。
• The police used torture to extort a confession from him.警察对他用刑逼供。

10 bullying   

v.恐吓，威逼( bully的现在分词 )；豪；跋扈

参考例句：

• Many cases of bullying go unreported . 很多恐吓案件都没有人告发。
• All cases of bullying will be severely dealt with. 所有以大欺小的情况都将受到严肃处理。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 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。

12 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

13 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

14 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》

15 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。