VOA慢速英语2014 美国众议院议员称需采取行动打击贩卖人口

 

AS IT IS 2014-05-23 US House Members Take Action to Limit Human Trafficking 美国众议院议员称需采取行动打击贩卖人口

Human trafficking exists in almost every area of the world.  Children, young women, and even men can become trapped, and forced into the sex trade and involuntary labor¹.

Many Americans think of human trafficking as a problem that exists far away from the United States.  But the U.S. government says as many as 17,500 people are trafficked within this country every year.  That number does not include those who are kidnapped and forced to become sex slaves within U.S. borders.  Now the House of Representatives has taken action to help the victims and punish those responsible.

Shandra Woworuntu is a survivor² of human trafficking.  She met with House members in Washington this week.  She spoke³ in support of damage payments and other government services to help victims. 

Shandra is from Indonesia.  She is college educated and worked as a financial specialist in her country until she lost her job because of political unrest.  She came to the United States in 2001.  At the time, she thought she had been offered a job in the hospitality⁴ industry.  Instead, she was kidnapped at a New York airport and forced into sex slavery.

“During my arrival, someone picked me up, and took me into the van. They took my passport, they took my hidden ticket, and the same day I was trafficking into underground sex business.”

Shandra escaped, and her trafficker is now in prison.  She received help from a non-profit group.  She is now working to make people better informed on the problem of human trafficking.

The two main parties in the U.S. Congress agreed on five bills to help state and local governments develop victim-center programs.  Under the proposals, the governments would train law enforcement officers to rescue victims, and not treat them as sex workers.

Eric Cantor of Virginia is the House Majority leader.

“And we must confront⁵ this issue head on, not just as Republicans⁶, not just as Democrats⁷, but as dads, as moms, as sisters and brothers.  We must protect our children.”

New York Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney has worked to fight human trafficking around the world for more than 10 years.

“And there is no crime on Earth more appalling⁸, no offense⁹ as terrible, no act of depravity as harmful to the community of a nation and certainly to the individuals affected¹⁰.” 

The five bills also seek to reduce the demand for human trafficking.  They do this by urging police and judges to treat those who have sex with children as human traffickers, not everyday criminals.  The average age for girls forced into sex slavery is 13.  The average age for boys is 12.

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 hospitality   

n.好客，殷勤；adj.（气候等）宜人，适宜

参考例句：

• He welcomed you to enjoy his hospitality.他欢迎你去做客。
• Thank you for your kind hospitality.谢谢你的盛情款待。

5 confront   

vt.遭遇，勇敢地面对，正视，使对质

参考例句：

• A soldier has to confront danger.士兵须面对危险。
• We must confront future with optimism.我们必须乐观地面对未来。

6 republicans   

拥护共和政体者，共和主义者( republican的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Republicans got shellacked in the elections. 共和党在选举中一败涂地。
• The latest poll gives the Republicans a 5％ lead. 最近的民意调查结果表明共和党领先了五个百分点。

7 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 appalling   

adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。

9 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。

10 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。