2015年经济学人 俄罗斯人权问题 悲惨的同志

 

Human rights in Russia

俄罗斯人权问题

Grim to be gay

悲惨的同志

The plight¹ of gays prompts calls for a boycott² of the Sochi Olympics

同志的困境激起人们对索契冬奥会的抵制

SINCE Russia was awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics, it has had to deal with everything from cost overruns to the historical grievances³ of the Circassian diaspora and concerns over an Islamic insurgency⁴ in the north Caucasus. But an issue that the authorities did not foresee, nor seem yet to understand, now threatens to spoil its ambitions most of all.

自从俄罗斯获得2014年冬奥会的举办权，他就不得不处理各种问题，从成本超支到切尔克斯人的历史遗留问题以及对高加索北部伊斯兰教叛乱的担忧。但是，一件俄罗斯当局没有预见、似乎也不能理解的事情现在却成了破坏奥运会举办的主要威胁。

Legislation signed by President Vladimir Putin in June outlaws⁵ “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” among minors⁶. Such imprecise wording—what exactly constitutes “propaganda”?—means it could be enforced widely or not at all. So far, it has not led to a single case.

六月，总统普金签署法律，宣布对未成年人“宣传非传统的两性关系”是违法的。这种极其不精确的用语—如何确定“宣传”所包含的内容？——意味着执行起来可松可紧。目前为止，这项立法还没有导致任何确切的案例。

As with other recent moves, such as the ban on adoptions⁷ by Americans and the criminalisation of blasphemy⁸, the motive⁹ seems more political than moral. A deputy from the pro-Kremlin United Russia party speaks of protecting the country against the “destruction of its fundamental cultural codes”. It is easiest to define those codes by what they are not: Western, liberal, modern. Masha Lipman of the Carnegie Moscow Centre, a think-tank, says the Kremlin has sought to “isolate and stigmatise” such people, while creating a myth of a new Russian identity from a hotchpotch of Orthodox piety¹¹, traditional values and provincial¹² distrust of urban elites¹³.

正如像禁止美国人收养儿童和对亵渎宗教的刑事化等其他举措一样，这项举动的政治意义大于道德意义。一位亲克林姆林宫的统一俄罗斯党的代表谈到以反抗“破坏基本文化规范”来保卫国家。我们很容易定义哪些是规范所不包含的：比如西方、自由、现代。卡内基莫斯科中心（一个智囊团）的玛莎·利普顿说克林姆林宫试图“孤立并污蔑”那些人，同时创造一个糅合了正统信仰、传统价值观以及守旧的不信任城市精英的观念的新一代俄罗斯人。

Gays and lesbians make easy targets. Russia is socially liberal on adultery, abortion¹⁴ and divorce, but attitudes to homosexuality resemble those in the West of a generation ago. Soviet-era doublethink about sex is compounded by the role of male rape¹⁵ in prison culture, and the stigma¹⁰ attached to its victims: opushenny, “made low” or debased, for life.

同志总是容易成为枪靶。俄罗斯大众对通奸、流产和离婚都很宽容，而对待同性恋的态度却停留在上一代西方人的水平。苏维埃时代，由于监狱中存有男性被强奸的风气以及被害者被烙上污名，使得人们对性有了双重标准。

Yet unease and distaste, more than overt¹⁶ hostility¹⁷, have governed public attitudes. The existence of gays and lesbians is tolerated as long as they are not seen to “contaminate” the public square, says Tanya Lokshina of Human Rights Watch, though the near-invisibility of gays and lesbians has let prejudice and misunderstanding fester. A poll by the Levada Centre found that 80% of respondents do not have a single gay acquaintance. Alexander Smirnov, who was asked to quit his job at the Moscow mayor’s office after he came out in Afisha, an arts and culture magazine, says gays are seen as “alien people”.

但是统治公众态度的是不安和厌恶，而不是公开的敌意。人权观察组织的塔尼亚说只要同志不在公共场所乱来公众就能忍耐他们的存在，即使这种让同志近乎隐形的做法还是让偏见和误解加深。列瓦达中心的民调发现80%的被调查者在生活圈中没有同志。亚历山大·斯米尔诺夫因在一本名叫Afisha的文艺杂志上出柜而被迫辞去其在莫斯科市长办公室的工作，他说同志被当成“外星人”看待。

Now the new law adds an emotive slur¹⁸ to latent prejudice, by linking homosexuality and paedophilia. That resonates with a cultural idolisation of childhood purity. More than three-quarters of Russians polled say that they support the ban on gay “propaganda” to minors. In principle, the law appears to prevent any public defence of the rights of gays and lesbians—in effect, says Polina Andrianova of Coming Out, a campaign group, creating a “socially unequal” caste.

如今，新法通过将同性恋和恋童癖联系起来，给这种潜在的偏见加上令人敏感的污点。这种共鸣是源于对童真的偶像式崇拜风气。超过四分之三的被调查者说她们支持禁止在未成年人中宣传同性恋的法律。一个名为“出柜”的宣传团队成员波莉娜说，原则上，立法似乎是为了限制同志在公共场合辩护的权利，而实际上则是制造了一个被不公平对待的群体。

Even more worrying, she says, the law has implicitly¹⁹ given a “green light to aggression”. A nasty new trend is the posting of videos online showing gay men tricked into meetings where they are humiliated²⁰ by vigilantes. Police treatment of gay-rights protesters has been harsh. Igor Kochetkov, another campaigner, notices “disillusionment and depression” among Russia’s gays; a poll finds that the number who experienced harassment²¹ or pressure doubled in the past year to 50%.

她说，更让人担心的是这项立法暗中给侵犯同志的行为亮了绿灯。现在有一种下流的新趋势，人们把同志骗到集会然后将他们被义务警员羞辱的视频上传到网上。警察对待同志权利反抗者的态度十分严酷。另一名活动推广人伊戈尔表示“幻灭和绝望”笼罩了整个俄罗斯同志圈；民调发现感到烦恼和压力的人相比去年翻了一番，达到50%。

Russian officials still seem baffled by the idea that outsiders really care about the issue. Spurred by campaigners calling for a boycott of the Olympics, foreign governments have complained. An official of the International Olympic Committee says it is “not happy”. It tried unsuccessfully to warn the government that the new law presented a potentially “massive issue”, but its calls went unheeded.

俄罗斯官员至今似乎对外界真的在关注这个问题而感到困惑。受到抵制冬奥会活动的影响，外国政府也开始抱怨。一名国际奥委会的官员说这不是个愉快的结局。他们试图警告俄罗斯政府新法会产生潜在的“巨大问题”，但这些要求都被俄方忽略。

The IOC is now waiting for a written document from a deputy prime minister, Dmitry Kozak, which should give what it calls “cast-iron assurances” that the propaganda law will not affect participants or spectators. Other Russian ministers have said repeatedly that the law will be in full force during the Olympics. A compromise for Sochi is likely—but given Mr Putin’s political priorities and society’s attitudes, the outlook for Russian gays is dark.

国际奥委会正在等待俄罗斯副总理德米特里·科扎克的书面文件，坚决保证新法绝不会影响参赛者和观众。其他俄罗斯大臣则反复强调新法在奥运会期间完全有效。对于索契来说，采取妥协是有可能的，但鉴于普金的政治选择和社会的态度，俄罗斯同志的前景将是黑暗的。

1 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

2 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

3 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

5 outlaws   

歹徒，亡命之徒( outlaw的名词复数 )； 逃犯

参考例句：

• During his year in the forest, Robin met many other outlaws. 在森林里的一年，罗宾遇见其他许多绿林大盗。
• I didn't have to leave the country or fight outlaws. 我不必离开自己的国家，也不必与不法分子斗争。

6 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 adoptions   

n.采用，收养( adoption的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Adoption agencies are always so open to alternative family adoptions. 领养中介机构永远都对领养家庭敞开。 来自电影对白
• The number of adoptions has grown in the past year. 去年，收养子女的数字增加了。 来自互联网

8 blasphemy   

n.亵渎，渎神

参考例句：

• His writings were branded as obscene and a blasphemy against God.他的著作被定为淫秽作品，是对上帝的亵渎。
• You have just heard his blasphemy!你刚刚听到他那番亵渎上帝的话了！

9 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

10 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

11 piety   

n.虔诚，虔敬

参考例句：

• They were drawn to the church not by piety but by curiosity.他们去教堂不是出于虔诚而是出于好奇。
• Experience makes us see an enormous difference between piety and goodness.经验使我们看到虔诚与善意之间有着巨大的区别。

12 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

13 elites   

精华( elite的名词复数 )； 精锐； 上层集团； （统称）掌权人物

参考例句：

• The elites are by their nature a factor contributing to underdevelopment. 这些上层人物天生是助长欠发达的因素。
• Elites always detest gifted and nimble outsiders. 社会名流对天赋聪明、多才多艺的局外人一向嫌恶。

14 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

15 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

16 overt   

adj.公开的，明显的，公然的

参考例句：

• His opponent's intention is quite overt.他的对手的意图很明显。
• We should learn to fight with enemy in an overt and covert way.我们应学会同敌人做公开和隐蔽的斗争。

17 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

18 slur   

v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音

参考例句：

• He took the remarks as a slur on his reputation.他把这些话当作是对他的名誉的中伤。
• The drug made her speak with a slur.药物使她口齿不清。

19 implicitly   

adv. 含蓄地, 暗中地, 毫不保留地

参考例句：

• Many verbs and many words of other kinds are implicitly causal. 许多动词和许多其他类词都蕴涵着因果关系。
• I can trust Mr. Somerville implicitly, I suppose? 我想，我可以毫无保留地信任萨莫维尔先生吧？

20 humiliated   

感到羞愧的

参考例句：

• Parents are humiliated if their children behave badly when guests are present. 子女在客人面前举止失当，父母也失体面。
• He was ashamed and bitterly humiliated. 他感到羞耻，丢尽了面子。

21 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。