PBS高端访谈:塞内加尔女性痛苦的成长阶段

 　　JEFFREY BROWN:Next: abandoning a widespread and painful rite¹ of passage.

　　Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro visited the West African nation of Senegal. His report is part of our Agents for Change series.

　　And a note: Some viewers may find the subject matter troubling.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:As dusk approaches, a group called Tostan sets up a giant screen in this remote village in Senegal. To overcome language barriers, the feature will be a 1929 Buster Keaton silent film. The film is a hit, as were events put on earlier in the day by Tostan.

　　Its mission is to teach about human rights, specifically the right to health, but its seminars and skits² will often lead to a discussion of an age-old custom: female genital cutting.

　　WOMAN:She needs to be cut. All girls need that. You can't have a recognized marriage if she's not cut.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:This painful rite of passage is practiced by both Muslims and Christians³ across a swathe of mostly African nations, from Senegal to Egypt.

　　Each year, the World Health Organization says up to three million girls in Africa are subjected to genital mutilation, and up to 140 million women live with its consequences. Genital cutting probably originated in the harems of ancient rulers as a means of controlling women's fidelity⁴, or a sign of chastity among those who aspired⁵ to be consorts⁶, according to Molly Melching, who started Tostan.

　　MOLLY MELCHING,Founder, Tostan: As the years went on, I mean, 2,220 years, it became very much a part of what was considered criteria⁷ for good marriage.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:Melching is an Illinois native who has lived here for about four decades, first as a student, then a Peace Corps⁸ worker.

　　Genital cutting was rarely discussed publicly, and in fact when she began Tostan 20 years ago, her goal wasn't to end it, but instead to simply provide information that was sorely lacking.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:When you see a friend that you've known for several months and you've gone to her house for lunch, and then she tells you her child has some problem, that it's someone who has cast an evil spell on the child, the baby, and that she's going to take them to a religious leader to get the spell taken off, and you don't know what to say, and it turns out the baby was dehydrated.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:But the more Tostan's staff and volunteers talked to local communities about health, the more the topic Melching calls FGC came up, since people began to tie it to bad health.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:So, suddenly, as they started learning germ transmission and the consequences of FGC and how these infections occur and why they had more problems in childbirth than other women who have not been cut, they started saying, wait a minute.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:To go from talking about an age-old cultural norm to actually changing it presented a huge challenge. Tostan's approach has been to go to local imams to get their agreement that the ritual is not a religious obligation.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:We share our modules⁹ with the religious leaders, so that they see that everything that we do is for the well-being¹⁰ of the community, the health, and all these things are things that Islam espouses¹¹. And so they're very happy in general, but first of all they're happy because we start with them.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:That respect also carries over into the group's messages in general.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:Tostan found that using approaches that shame or blame people really was just the opposite of what would work in changing social norms.

　　When you say to someone, we know you love your daughter and you're doing things because you love your daughter, but let's look at this and let's try to understand together exactly what are the consequences of this practice, but you are the ones that will have to make the decision, then suddenly people are willing to listen. They don't get defensive¹².

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:It's been far more effective than the approach of many aid groups, says University of California, San Diego, Professor Gerry Mackie.

　　GERRY MACKIE, University of California, San Diego: When we think of an ideal way of making a change, we'd say it's democratic. We all get together and talk it over and decide what the best thing is to do, whereas some development approaches would, say, force them to do it, pay them to do it, trick them into doing it.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:In Tostan's approach, local leaders and elders produce the skits and lead discussions. Their words and personal experience carry strong credibility.

　　Diarre Ba used to make a living as a cutter.

　　DIARRE BA, Senegal: I was part of this process. I felt bad. This is not right. But I didn't know anything at the time. I had no learning.

　　MARIAM BAMBA, Senegal: It's painful. I can never forget the pain, so painful.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:Mariam Bamba is a longtime campaigner for Tostan, and she spared her 10-year-old daughter the trauma¹³. Yet, early in her own marriage, she was determined¹⁴ to keep up the tradition, even though her own husband was opposed to it.

　　SULEYMAN TRAORE, Senegal: She insisted that she had to do it. There were so many problems if you didn't do it. If you cooked meals, no one would eat your food. It's because we didn't know.

　　People told us that it was our religion. If you don't do it, you'll be going against your religion. All this is false. But I alone can't do this in the village.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:Doing this alone could render one's daughters unmarriageable.

　　So one of Tostan's most critical roles today is to lessen¹⁵ the stigma¹⁶ by getting whole communities and others into which they might marry to jointly¹⁷ declare an end to cutting. Public rallies called declarations have increased to include hundreds of villages who gather to celebrate the decision.

　　GERRY MACKIE:One part of bringing about a change like this is to get everyone to change at once, what we call coordinated¹⁸ abandonment. Everyone has to see that everyone else sees that everyone is changing.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that I would be sitting here years later, saying that 4,792 communities in Senegal had abandoned. In the beginning, it was just unthought of, unbelievable, because it was so taboo¹⁹.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:Since our visit, the number of communities has grown to more than 5,000, and many have also pledged to change another tradition, the frequent practice of allowing older men to marry adolescent girls, acknowledging both the health risks and the girls' human rights.

　　Molly Melching says there are examples in history of this kind of sweeping²⁰ shift in social norms and attitudes. She sees a very current one every time she comes home in American views on smoking.

　　MOLLY MELCHING:People were smoking, and nobody said anything about it much through the '50s, the '60s, and even the '70s. And as people became more and more aware of the harm that it causes, more and more people -- there was a critical mass of people who started really protesting. It was amazing for me, coming from Senegal to the United States, to see how quickly things turned around.

　　FRED DE SAM LAZARO:Tostan's efforts have now expanded beyond Senegal to seven other African nations.

　　JUDY WOODRUFF:A version of Fred's story aired on the PBS program "Religion & Ethics²¹ Newsweekly."

　　His reporting is a partnership²² with the Under-Told Stories Project at Saint Mary's University in Minnesota. He talks more with Molly Melching on our World page. Find their conversation about how she got her start in activism against genital mutilation.

1 rite   

n.典礼，惯例，习俗

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
• Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。

2 skits   

n.讽刺文( skit的名词复数 )；小喜剧；若干；一群

参考例句：

• One of these skits, "The King of Beasts" resembles a traditional frontier prank. 一出滑稽短剧《兽王》酷似传统的边疆闹剧。 来自英汉非文学 - 民俗
• Kids can develop ad campaigns, commercials and skits to illustrate character traits. 孩子们会发动宣传运动，制作广告宣传片和幽默短剧来说明性格品质。 来自互联网

3 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

4 fidelity   

n.忠诚，忠实；精确

参考例句：

• There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
• His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。

5 aspired   

v.渴望，追求( aspire的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She aspired to a scientific career. 她有志于科学事业。
• Britain,France,the United States and Japan all aspired to hegemony after the end of World War I. 第一次世界大战后，英、法、美、日都想争夺霸权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 consorts   

n.配偶( consort的名词复数 )；（演奏古典音乐的）一组乐师；一组古典乐器；一起v.结伴( consort的第三人称单数 )；交往；相称；调和

参考例句：

• The crews of the Card and its consorts had eaten Christmas dinner in Casablanca before sailing. 在起航前“卡德”号和僚舰上的官兵已在卡萨布兰卡吃了圣诞晚餐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• If he consorts with persons unsuitable to him, his bishop will interfere. 如果他和不适合他去结交的人来往，他的主教就会进行干涉。 来自辞典例句

7 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

8 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 modules   

n.模块( module的名词复数 )；单元；（宇宙飞船上各个独立的）舱；组件

参考例句：

• The course consists of ten core modules and five optional modules. 这门课程包括十个必修单元和五个选修单元。
• Our English course is divided into modules on poetry, drama, and novels. 我们的英语课分为诗歌、戏剧和小说等单元。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

11 espouses   

v.（决定）支持，拥护（目标、主张等）( espouse的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She followed the feminist movement; The candidate espouses Republican ideals. 她支持女权运动；这个侯选人支持共和党人的观点。 来自互联网
• Give me a break – every decent company espouses these things! 让我歇歇吧–每一个正规公司都赞成这些！ 来自互联网

12 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

13 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

14 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

15 lessen   

vt.减少，减轻；缩小

参考例句：

• Regular exercise can help to lessen the pain.经常运动有助于减轻痛感。
• They've made great effort to lessen the noise of planes.他们尽力减小飞机的噪音。

16 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。

17 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。

18 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

19 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

20 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

21 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

22 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。