2006年VOA标准英语-Singapore's Restrictions on Activists During Wo

By Ron Corben
Bangkok
13 September 2006

Singapore's restrictions¹ on protests by civic² groups at the annual meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary³ Fund next week have drawn⁴ criticism from Bank officials, as well as from activist⁵ groups.

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Singapore's tough public security guidelines have come under the spotlight⁶ ahead of next week's annual meeting of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. 

People walk past designated space for protesters at Suntec City Convention center, Wednesday

The Singapore government has banned more than 20 foreign activists⁷ from entering the country, even though they had invitations from the Bank and the IMF. The police also set tough restrictions for demonstrations⁹ by civic groups and on activities by delegates at the meeting and several preliminary events.

Those on the banned list include representatives from the World Development Movement in Britain, Thailand's Focus on the Global South, the Freedom from Debt Coalition¹⁰ in the Philippines and the Forum¹¹ on Indonesian Development.

Singapore authorities say the tough policy will prevent violent anti-globalization protests that those that brought the World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle in 1999 to a standstill.

The government is allowing about 700 activists from more than 70 organizations worldwide to gather at a specially¹² designated zone in the convention center where the meeting will take place.

Roderick Chia, with the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development, says authorities have set down clear limits for civic groups.

"No gatherings¹⁴ are allowed outside Suntec City itself, according to Singapore law, more specific guidelines issued by the police, civil society organizations must not move out of the designated area, are not allowed to use sound and amplification¹⁵ systems, or burn items or behave in a manner that would 'provoke a breach¹⁶ of peace'," he said.

The restrictions have drawn criticism not only from activist groups, but also from the World Bank president, Paul Wolfowitz. He has urged Singaporean authorities to ease the regulations and to allow a "strong dialogue" to take place during the meetings.

The World Bank and IMF annual meetings are held in Washington for two years in a row, then are held overseas one year. The meetings usually draw thousands of activists and protesters, particularly in Washington. Most protesters are concerned about the policies of the two multilateral financial institutions that they say do not help impoverished¹⁷ nations.

Over the past decade, the two institutions, along with other multilateral organizations, such as the World Trade Organization, have begun to work with rights groups and aid agencies, and even welcome peaceful protests.

Singapore, however, has strict laws limiting public gatherings and political speech. Media in the country rarely criticize the government and top officials regularly turn to defamation¹⁸ laws and lawsuits¹⁹ to punish critics. Foreign journalists and publications have been banned because of reports the government did not like.

The Singapore government says its tough policies on protests and media freedoms have been a cornerstone of the city-state's evolution into an Asian economic powerhouse.

The government has said the protest restrictions are necessary to protect the delegates at the World Bank gathering¹³. More than 10 thousand delegates, including foreign government officials and financial experts, will attend the meeting, which takes place September 19th and 20th. Many of them also are attending preliminary seminars and forums²⁰ this week.

Singapore foiled terror plots in 2001 by the Southeast Asian organization Jemaah Islamiah. The group allegedly planned to attack Western targets such as embassies and hotels. J.I., which has links to the al-Qaida terrorist organization, has carried out several deadly bombings in neighboring Indonesia.

Alex Au Waiping, a Singapore rights activist, says he thinks Singaporeans accept the government's tough stance as a security measure and are not concerned about the freedom of assembly or expression.

"'Why do we want freedom of assembly - it will only permit trouble makers²¹ to hold protest demonstrations, riot and scare away foreign investors²²?' Many people not see it as an infringement²³ of their basic rights - no - they see it as one more example of wise government protecting us from chaos," he said.

But he says that the government's policies will limit free speech at the World Bank meeting.

"I would be surprised if any foreign group can manage to gather enough strength to make anything that even resembles a protest or demonstration⁸ … if any foreign group actually manages to get very far," he said.

Some activists may go to the Indonesian island of Batam to hold demonstrations and meetings. Indonesians authorities have decided²⁴ to allow foreign activists to gather on the island, just 40 minutes by ferry from Singapore, overriding²⁵ an earlier ban on protests by foreigners there.

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

3 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

4 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

5 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。

6 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

7 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》

8 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

9 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

12 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

13 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

14 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

15 amplification   

n.扩大，发挥

参考例句：

• The voice of despair may be weak and need amplification.绝望的呼声可能很微弱，需要扩大。
• Some of them require further amplification.其中有些内容需进一步详细阐明。

16 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

17 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 defamation   

n.诽谤；中伤

参考例句：

• Character defamation can be either oral or written.人格诽谤既可以是口头的也可以是书面的。
• The company sued for defamation.这个公司因受到诽谤而提起诉讼。

19 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

20 forums   

讨论会； 座谈会； 广播专题讲话节目； 集会的公共场所( forum的名词复数 )； 论坛，讨论会，专题讨论节目； 法庭

参考例句：

• A few of the forums were being closely monitored by the administrators. 有些论坛被管理员严密监控。
• It can cast a dark cloud over these forums. 它将是的论坛上空布满乌云。

21 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

23 infringement   

n.违反；侵权

参考例句：

• Infringement of this regulation would automatically rule you out of the championship.违背这一规则会被自动取消参加锦标赛的资格。
• The committee ruled that the US ban constituted an infringement of free trade.委员会裁定美国的禁令对自由贸易构成了侵犯

24 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

25 overriding   

a.最主要的

参考例句：

• Development is of overriding importance. 发展是硬道理
• My overriding concern is to raise the standards of state education. 我最关心的是提高国民教育水平。