英语课程计划-World Day Against Child Labour

One of the world’s most serious problems is the use of child labour. June 12 is the World Day Against Child Labour. All around the world people will take part in activities to raise awareness¹ of the damage child labour does to children, families and societies. The day is also one on which the world promotes the human rights of children. The United Nations set out in its Millennium² Development Goals a number of targets to help prevent child labour. By 2015, it hopes all children complete their primary education and that there is equality in education. To do this, governments must take steps to reduce poverty and provide enough jobs for adults. These are the two main reasons why we have child labour today.

There are over 250 million children worldwide who work in some kind of labour. Eighty percent of these, around 200 million, work in dangerous and hazardous³ conditions. A senior UNICEF spokesperson on child protection said: “Child labour is a widespread phenomenon all over the world…When that work stands between a child and his or her chances for education, or affects his or her health, then we consider this a violation⁴ of the rights of children.” There are many terrible forms of child labour. These include working in dangerous mines deep below the ground and being a slave in the sex industry. Many children are sold by their parents to raise money. Many more are beaten and abused⁵ by cruel employers⁶, or sold by child traffickers.

1 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

2 millennium   

n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世

参考例句：

• The whole world was counting down to the new millennium.全世界都在倒计时迎接新千年的到来。
• We waited as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the old millennium.我们静候着时钟滴答走过千年的最后几秒钟。

3 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

4 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

5 abused   

v.妄用( abuse的过去式和过去分词 )；虐待；辱骂

参考例句：

• All the children had been physically and emotionally abused. 所有这些儿童的身心都受到了摧残。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This rule was brought into being because the old law was abused. 由于旧的法律遭到滥用，这条规则便应运而生。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 employers   

雇主( employer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Employers must consider all candidates impartially and without bias. 雇主必须公平而毫无成见地考虑所有求职者。
• The onus is on employers to follow health and safety laws. 雇主有义务遵行健康安全法。