美国立法者对性剥削法案进行表决

 

US Lawmakers to Vote on Sexual Exploitation Bill

美国立法者对性剥削法案进行表决

 

The House of Representatives is due to consider legislation on Wednesday aimed at strengthening measures Congress has already adopted to fight the sexual exploitation of women and children around the world.

 

In the weeks after the devastating¹ tsunami² waves struck countries around the Indian Ocean in December, concerns were raised about unscrupulous individuals trying to exploit the situation to engage in sexual exploitation and child trafficking. This was especially true in Indonesia, where thousands of children in the hard-hit province of Aceh in Sumatra were left without parents and family members, making them vulnerable to abuse.

 

The legislation before the House of Representatives, called the Humanitarian³ Assistance Code of Conduct Act, is aimed at associating Congress and overall U.S. assistance policies even more closely than they are already with promoting protection of women and children.

 

Supported by opposition⁴ Democrats⁵ and majority Republicans in the House, it would require organizations working in refugee, famine and disaster relief to adopt a code of conduct protecting aid recipients⁶ from sexual exploitation and abuse, or face the loss of U.S. government funding.

 

Congressman⁷ William Delahunt, is a key Democratic supporter of the legislation.

 

William Delahunt: We can't lose sight of the unfortunate reality that at times such as those [the tsunami], there are increased opportunities if you will, for sexual predators⁹ and traffickers. For this reason, we need to be very clear that as part of our relief effort there ought to be a component¹⁰ that protects women and children.

 

The uniform code of conduct is modeled on United Nations task force guidelines. These provide for dismissal of humanitarian workers engaging in such conduct, prohibiting money, jobs or services being exchanged for sex, discouraging sexual relationships with recipients of assistance and requiring that humanitarian workers report colleagues they suspect of engaging in such activities.

 

House Majority Leader Tom DeLay says the U.S. Congress has a moral obligation to ensure that children orphaned¹¹ by the tsunami in South Asia are safe from possible exploitation:

 

Mr. DeLay: We just cannot sit by and let it happen anymore. Too many women and children have suffered too much for us to turn away from this kind of abuse at the hands of people we pay to help. Humanitarian assistance and the protection of women and children from abuse are linked by common sense. They should be linked in the law as well. This bill will begin to do just that.

 

Both lawmakers referred to the ongoing¹² investigation¹³ of sexual misconduct by U.N. peacekeepers in the Congo. Mr. Delahunt points to the decision of the Moroccan government to file charges against some of its troops accused of bribing¹⁴ Congolese children to underscore the importance of efforts to bring more attention to the issue.

 

Supporters of the Humanitarian Assistance Code of Conduct Act say their bill has the support of a number of private and the United Nations aid organizations.

 

If it is approved by both the House and Senate, the legislation would require a report from the president within six months on implementation¹⁵ of its provisions.

 

Sponsors of the bill plan to bring it up for consideration in the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

 

Dan Robinson, VOA news, on Capitol Hill.

 

注释：

unscrupulous [Qn5skru:pjulEs] adj. 肆无忌惮的，无道德的，不谨慎的

Sumatra [su5mB:trE] n. 苏门答腊岛(在印尼西部)

code of conduct 行动守则，管理法典

predator⁸ [5predEtE] n. 掠夺者，食肉动物

dismissal [dis5misEl] n. 免职，解雇，不予考虑

common sense n. 常识(尤指判断力)

1 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

2 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

3 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 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》

6 recipients   

adj.接受的；受领的；容纳的；愿意接受的n.收件人；接受者；受领者；接受器

参考例句：

• The recipients of the prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者的姓名登在报上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The recipients of prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者名单登在报上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

8 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

9 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

11 orphaned   

[计][修]孤立

参考例句：

• Orphaned children were consigned to institutions. 孤儿都打发到了福利院。
• He was orphaned at an early age. 他幼年时便成了孤儿。

12 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

13 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

14 bribing   

贿赂

参考例句：

• He tried to escape by bribing the guard. 他企图贿赂警卫而逃走。
• Always a new way of bribing unknown and maybe nonexistent forces. 总是用诸如此类的新方法来讨好那不知名的、甚或根本不存在的魔力。 来自英汉非文学 - 科幻

15 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。