2006年VOA标准英语-Iraqi Women Visit the US to Promote Women'

By Chris Simkins
Washington, DC
25 January 2006
 
watch Iraqi Women report

In Iraq, many women are demanding that lawmakers enact¹ constitutional changes ensuring they have greater say in political, economic and social affairs. VOA's Chris Simkins reports on efforts to increase women's rights in Iraq.

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Women make up 65 percent of Iraq's population. But for decades they've had few rights and little representation in the government. Now that a new government is being formed, advocates for women's rights are trying to secure greater political, social, economic and legal rights. This group of prominent Iraqi women was in Washington, D.C., and traveled around the world, attending workshops aimed at teaching and promoting skills needed to become political, business and community leaders.  

Zakia Hakki   
  
Zakia Hakki, who was the first female judge in Iraq, says political negotiations³ over forming the new government have so far not involved women.

"There is very, very important negotiation² and dialogue inside Iraq by the leaders of all the political groups,” she says. “But there is not a single woman with them. We should continue our struggle to be recognized as equal partners to build our future."

Judge Hakki hopes women can be part of a committee that works on amending⁴ the constitution.

Under the new Iraqi constitution, ratified⁵ in October, women are guaranteed a quarter of parliament's 275 seats.

But women's rights are limited or vaguely⁶ defined. That's why some rights advocates are focused on expanding the role women can and should have in rebuilding a new Iraq. Ala Noori Talabani, an advocate for Kurdish and women's rights, says in order for change to come about it is important women actively⁷ participate in the political process.
 

Ala Noori Talabani   
  
"If we have enough women there and they are well trained and they have skills then when we are passing new laws, because so many new laws will be passed in this term of the parliament, those ladies there will have time to review the laws and see how they benefit women and human rights," said the activist⁸.

Hanaa Edwar, a founder⁹ of the Iraqi Women's Network, says women suffered greatly under Saddam Hussein's regime, just like men and deserves equal protection. 

 
Hanaa Edwar
  
"We have the equality. Equality in imprisonment¹⁰, equality in executions, equality in displacement¹¹, equality in such a bloody¹², bloody, and miserable¹³ life that we have shared with our brothers,” said Ms. Edwar. “So when we say we have the leading role also with our brothers we mean that we (women) have energy, we have good knowledge and we are really trying to build peace in the country and justice."

Iraqi women's rights activists¹⁴ cite a 1959 law, which protected the rights of women and the family, especially in marriage.

Ms. Talabani says another part of their plan is to make sure the UN sets up a women’s human rights commission in Iraq to monitor laws passed by the legislature. She says in the long term more should be done to integrate women into the country's police force and judicial¹⁵ system.

1 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

2 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 amending   

改良，修改，修订( amend的现在分词 )； 改良，修改，修订( amend的第三人称单数 )( amends的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Amending acts in 1933,1934, and 1935 attempted to help honest debtors rehabilitate themselves. 一九三三年，一九三四年和一九三五年通过的修正案是为了帮助诚实的债务人恢复自己的地位。
• Two ways were used about the error-amending of contour curve. 采用两种方法对凸轮轮廓曲线进行了修正。

5 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

6 vaguely   

adv.含糊地，暖昧地

参考例句：

• He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。
• He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面，对一切都视而不见。

7 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

8 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。

9 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

10 imprisonment   

n.关押，监禁，坐牢

参考例句：

• His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment.他的判决由死刑减为无期徒刑。
• He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for committing bigamy.他因为犯重婚罪被判入狱一年。

11 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

12 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

13 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

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 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。