pbs高端访谈:印度妇女处境为何如此悲惨

 　　RAY SUAREZ:For more on all of this, we turn to Miranda Kennedy, who lived in India from 2002 to 2007 as a reporter. She's the author of "Sideways on a Scooter: Life and Love in India," which looks at the lives of women in that country.

　　Miranda, as we have been discussing, sexual violence against women in India is widespread, everything from being groped in a public place to the kind of horrific gang rapes² that have made the news. What do the women that you talk to in your reporting over the year make of their own predicament?

　　MIRANDA KENNEDY, Author, "Sideways on a Scooter: Life and Love in India": Well, I think the sense of powerlessness among women in India is something that goes across caste and across religion. It is widespread.

　　And there is a frustration³ about it. As Julie said, there is a deep vein⁴ of frustration in the country. And I think that is what we are seeing, that this one case has sparked off. You know, this citizens protest didn't come out of nowhere. It's not a new issue.

　　There has been sexual violence against women in India for many, many decades. But I think the sense of a new feeling of kind of liberation about being able to take to the streets and say something about it is why we are seeing so much action right now.

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　　RAY SUAREZ:When a woman overcomes her own misgivings⁵, pressure from her own family, and actually goes to the police, what happens? Are the accusations⁶ investigated? Are the accused tried?

　　MIRANDA KENNEDY:Well, this is one of the biggest problems, Ray, because, first of all, it has to be said that the vast majority of rapes are not reported in India, as all over the world, but especially in India, because it is a huge taboo⁷.

　　There is a cultural no-no against it. It can ruin your life. If you are raped⁸, you will not get married. You could be thrown out of your village. So that is the most important thing.

　　But if you do have to get up to go to the police, as both of these women that have been discussed tonight did there to do, you could be humiliated⁹, as the younger woman was, the woman who committed suicide earlier this week.

　　She was humiliated, and often they are humiliated sexually in the police station. It is completely unacceptable. And then the police will not push it through. And the second big hurdle¹⁰ that women face if they do dare to come forward is the judicial¹¹ process.

　　You know, India's judicial process is notoriously slow for everything, including rapes, but everything else.

　　So if here the outside would be, you know, a year, but most cases are gone through in a few months, in India, you're talking several years. So why would you dare? Why would you do that? Why would you ruin your life if nothing is going to happen?

　　RAY SUAREZ:All the nations of South Asia have had female prime ministers. All have female cabinet secretaries. They have had female party leaders, potential governors.

　　How come they haven't taken up the cause of the widespread and under—widely understood cruelty against women in their countries?

　　MIRANDA KENNEDY:Well, all elected governments are—are—their hands are always tied by the mores¹², the social mores and cultural constrictions of that country, of their own country.

　　And India is a thriving democracy, but it is also very—it's really conservative. And there are many traditions which would prevent those kinds of things from happening.

　　So, I think it's great that we have female leaders right now. The head of the governing party in India is a woman. But that doesn't mean that she can make her only issue that of women's issues, if the rest of the government isn't going to follow along.

　　India's government is very constricted¹³ in many ways from what it can do. And, so, unfortunately, this hasn't been made a big case, a big issue of yet so far.

　　But I actually think that this could be the time. I think that this case could give an opening.

　　RAY SUAREZ:Well, news from Singapore of the young woman's death after the gang rape¹ broke during the middle of the night in the India. So, Indians in their millions will awake to the news that the woman has died.

　　Have we crossed a threshold? Is this an issue that simply can't be put back in the bottle and forgotten?

　　MIRANDA KENNEDY:Well, you know, I think that probably when it comes to the street protests, the death, the tragic¹⁴ death of this woman, is going through mean that the protest will peak today.

　　And it's possible that after that, the protests will dribble¹⁵ off and, you know, this case may be forgotten. This woman's name may stop being the top of the news. She obviously will. But I think that this case is a watershed¹⁶ moment. I think it can be a watershed moment.

　　There's other—there's many other cases actually in India of other social issues where civic¹⁷ protests have led to big change. And the amount—I mean, we had Delhi shut down. Central Delhi was shut down. Tens of thousands of protesters all over India have been taking to the streets.

　　There is real fury and a kind of coming-together about this issue. And so I'm hopeful that we are going to have more than just commissions of inquiry¹⁸, as Julie mentioned. I'm hopeful that we're going have some major change.

　　RAY SUAREZ:Journalist and author Miranda Kennedy, thanks for joining us.

　　MIRANDA KENNEDY:Thanks, Ray.

1 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。

2 rapes   

n.芸苔( rape的名词复数 )；强奸罪；强奸案；肆意损坏v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的第三人称单数 )；强奸

参考例句：

• The man who had committed several rapes was arrested. 那个犯了多起强奸案的男人被抓起来了。 来自辞典例句
• The incidence of reported rapes rose 0.8 percent. 美国联邦调查局还发布了两份特别报告。 来自互联网

3 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

4 vein   

n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络

参考例句：

• The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。
• The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。

5 misgivings   

n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧

参考例句：

• I had grave misgivings about making the trip. 对于这次旅行我有过极大的顾虑。
• Don't be overtaken by misgivings and fear. Just go full stream ahead! 不要瞻前顾后， 畏首畏尾。甩开膀子干吧！ 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

7 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

8 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

9 humiliated   

感到羞愧的

参考例句：

• Parents are humiliated if their children behave badly when guests are present. 子女在客人面前举止失当，父母也失体面。
• He was ashamed and bitterly humiliated. 他感到羞耻，丢尽了面子。

10 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

11 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

12 mores   

n.风俗，习惯，民德，道德观念

参考例句：

• The mores of that village are hard to believe.那村子的习俗让人难以置信。
• We advocate a harmonious society where corruption is swept away,and social mores are cleared.我们提倡弊绝风清，建设一个和谐社会。

13 constricted   

adj.抑制的，约束的

参考例句：

• Her throat constricted and she swallowed hard. 她喉咙发紧，使劲地咽了一下唾沫。
• The tight collar constricted his neck. 紧领子勒着他的脖子。

14 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

15 dribble   

v.点滴留下，流口水；n.口水

参考例句：

• Melted wax dribbled down the side of the candle.熔化了的蜡一滴滴从蜡烛边上流下。
• He wiped a dribble of saliva from his chin.他擦掉了下巴上的几滴口水。

16 watershed   

n.转折点，分水岭，分界线

参考例句：

• Our marriage was at a watershed.我们的婚姻到了一个转折关头。
• It forms the watershed between the two rivers.它成了两条河流的分水岭。

17 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

18 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。