2006年VOA标准英语-Asian Human Rights Group Urges UN to Set Higher

By Gabrielle Brick
Hong Kong
26 June 2006

Police baton¹ an unidentified person after violence erupted during funeral of actor Raj Kumar, in Bangalore, India, April 13, 2006  
  
To mark the U.N. International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, an Asian human-rights group is drawing attention to the status of human rights in several of the region's countries.

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The Asian Human Rights Commission says the possibility of torture is part of life today in many of the region's countries.

In a recent statement, the activist² organization based in Hong Kong urges the new United Nations Human Rights Council to require its members to enact³ and enforce laws against torture, or risk losing their seats.

Bruce Van Voorhis, a spokesman for the Asian Human Rights Commission, says members of the U.N. council should be held to high standards.

"If you have countries sitting on the U.N. Human Rights Council that are basically practicing widespread torture, what hope do people living in the rest of the world have?" he asked.

Among the U.N. council's Asian members, the commission notes that Bangladesh, Indonesia and the Philippines have no laws against torture, though their governments have ratified⁴ the international convention against torture.

The commission says torture is regularly used by law enforcement in India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. Human Rights Watch has also criticized these countries for custodial⁵ abuses.

Phillip Setunga, another of the commission's officers, says in Indonesia a few factors contribute to problems. First, he says, torture is not a punishable offense⁶. And second, he says, previous governments used torture extensively. The situation has improved and although torture sometimes occurs, some Indonesians may feel it is within tolerable limits.

"The success of the oppressor depends on the extent the oppressed reproduce the ideology⁷ and the rhetoric⁸ of the oppressor," said Setunga. "You talk to a lot of people, they will say, 'Oh, a little bit of torture is okay.'"

The commission says recent developments in Nepal offer the most hope for improved human rights in the region. The country has formed a group to investigate abuses the government is accused of committing during recent protests that ultimately forced the king out of power.

The United States was also criticized in the commission's report for setting a bad example for countries with less democratic traditions. It referred to the recent scandal regarding abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and allegations of inhumane treatment at the Guantanamo Bay detention⁹ center.

The Bush Administration says it does not endorse¹⁰ or permit torture. The U.S. is among the 105 countries that have ratified the convention against torture. It did not seek membership on the new U.N. council.

The U.N. Human Rights Council is meeting in Geneva. It replaced the old Commission for Human Rights, which was criticized by activists and many governments for allowing some countries with poor human-rights records to be members and to use the commission to protect themselves from scrutiny

1 baton   

n.乐队用指挥杖

参考例句：

• With the baton the conductor was beating time.乐队指挥用指挥棒打拍子。
• The conductor waved his baton,and the band started up.指挥挥动指挥棒，乐队开始演奏起来。

2 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。

3 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。

4 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。

5 custodial   

adj.监护的，照管的

参考例句：

• The teenagers were convicted of manslaughter and given a two-year custodial sentence. 这些青少年被判过失杀人罪，及二年的监禁（拘留）刑罚。
• This article interrogates the cultural experience of being a non custodial mother. 本文审视一位无监护权的母亲所感受到的文化体验。

6 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。

7 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

8 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

9 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

10 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。