印尼妇女在金正南被杀两年后获释

Indonesian Woman Freed Two Years After Kim Jong Nam Killing¹

Malaysian government lawyers have unexpectedly dropped charges against an Indonesian woman accused of killing North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un’s half-brother.

Siti Aisyah was released Monday after two years of detention². She had been accused of putting a deadly nerve agent on the face of Kim Jong Nam in an airport in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Aisyah and a Vietnamese woman, Doan Thi Huong, have said they both thought they were taking part in a prank³ for a television show.

Malaysia did not give any reason for its decision to drop the charge against Aisyah.

Indonesia’s government had repeatedly asked for the woman’s release.

The Vietnamese government has not been as demanding about the release of Huong, who is still in detention. The country recently welcomed North Korean leader Kim for an official visit and talks with American President Donald Trump⁴.

Aisyah cried and held onto Huong before leaving the courtroom Monday. She told reporters that she had only learned that morning that she would be freed.

Aisyah returned to Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital, later on Monday. There, she thanked the Indonesian president and other officials for their help.

“I feel happy, very happy that I cannot express in words,” she told reporters at Jakarta’s airport. “After this I just want to gather with my family.”

Huong, who remains⁵ on trial for the crime, was deeply upset.

“I am in shock. My mind is blank,” she told reporters after Aisyah left.

The two women were the only suspects charged in the murder. Four North Korean suspects fled Malaysia on the morning of February 13, 2017, the day Kim Jong Nam was killed.

The trial is to start again on Thursday. Government lawyers are expected to answer a request by Huong’s lawyers for the government to drop the murder charge against her.

Aisyah’s release comes just a month before Indonesia’s general election. The move is seen as helpful to President Joko Widodo, who is seeking re-election.

Indonesia’s government said it worked hard for Aisyah’s release. Its foreign ministry⁶ said in a statement that Aisyah had been “deceived and did not realize at all that she was being manipulated by North Korean intelligence.”

Aisyah is a migrant worker who never meant to murder anyone, the statement said.

After Aisyah’s release, Huong’s lawyer said that events were unfair. Last year, a judge said there was enough evidence for both of the women to be tried for murder.

“There must be justice,” Huong’s lawyer said. He added that she should also be released.

Malaysian officials have never officially accused North Korea. They made it clear that they did not want the trial to become a political issue.

Kim was the oldest son in the current generation of North Korea’s ruling family. He had been living outside North Korea for several years. Some believe that Kim Jong Un saw him as a threat his rule.

I’m Caty Weaver⁷.

Words in This Story

prank – n. a trick that is done to someone usually as a joke

deceive– v. to make someone believe something that is not true

manipulate– v. to deal with or control (someone or something) in a clever and usually unfair or selfish way

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 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。

3 prank   

n.开玩笑，恶作剧；v.装饰；打扮；炫耀自己

参考例句：

• It was thought that the fire alarm had been set off as a prank.人们认为火警报警器响是个恶作剧。
• The dean was ranking the boys for pulling the prank.系主任正在惩罚那些恶作剧的男学生。

4 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。