英国卫报:绑架为何成了一门生意(7)

Meanwhile, decisions about which groups were designated as terrorists were often politically determined¹ and sometimes arbitrary.

与此同时，往往由政府决定哪些组织为恐怖分子，这有时是武断的。

For example, a 2011 case, Masefield AG v Amlin Corporate² Member, determined that the payment of ransom³ to Somali pirates was legal under British law.

例如，2011年的一宗案件，梅斯菲尔德公司起诉英国阿姆林保险，裁定结果是，根据英国法律，向索马里海盗支付赎金是合法的。

As a result, Somali pirates were presumed to be criminals rather than terrorists, even when ties to al-Shabaab militants⁴ were alleged⁵.

因此，索马里海盗被认定为罪犯而不是恐怖分子，即使他们被指控与青年党激进分子有联系。

Meanwhile, it was illegal to pay ransom to a criminally oriented kidnapping cell in Nigeria

与此同时，在尼日利亚，如果犯罪绑架团伙被认为与博科圣地等受禁组织有联系，

if they were seen to have ties to proscribed⁶ groups such as Boko Haram.

那么，向他们支付赎金就是违法的。

In effect, the collision of disparate national policies and the insurance market

实际上，不同国家政策与保险市场存在的冲突

creates complexities⁷ that determine who lives and who dies in international kidnapping cases.

使情况变得错综复杂，这决定了国际绑架案件受害者的生死。

In 2008, a Canadian journalist, Amanda Lindhout, was kidnapped in Somalia, along with an Australian colleague, Nigel Brennan.

2008年，加拿大记者阿曼达·林浩特和澳大利亚同事奈杰尔·布伦南在索马里被绑架。

As young freelancers⁸, they did not have insurance.

作为年轻的自由职业者，他们没有保险。

Officially, neither Canada nor Australia pay ransom.

依据法规，加拿大和澳大利亚都不能支付赎金。

Driven by desperation, their families found a way forward.

在绝望的驱使下，他们的家人找到了前进的道路。

The one factor in their favour was that the group that kidnapped the pair was a criminal and not a terror organisation⁹.

对他们有利的一个因素是，绑架这两人的组织是一个犯罪组织，而不是一个恐怖组织。

Because they were not “terrorists,” the Canadian government entered into negotiations¹⁰,

因为他们不是“恐怖分子”，加拿大政府就参与了谈判，

offering to build a school or provide development aid in exchange for Lindhout’s release.

为了使林浩特获释，他们愿意修建一所学校或者提供发展援助。

But the kidnappers¹¹ wanted cash. They tortured Lindhout to put more pressure on her family, which had few resources.

但是绑架者想要的是现金。他们折磨林浩特，向她的财力有限的家人施压。

Realising that the negotiations were going nowhere, Lindhout’s mother, Lorinda Stewart, decided¹² that the only hope was to pay a ransom.

林浩特的母亲罗琳达·斯图尔特发现谈判没有进展，她认为唯一的希望就是支付赎金。

Canadian officials warned Stewart that paying ransom was against the law and that she could be prosecuted¹³ for doing so, but she forged ahead.

加拿大官方警告斯图尔特，支付赎金是违反法律的，她这样做可能会被起诉，但是她还是向前迈进。

1 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。

2 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

3 ransom   

n.赎金，赎身；v.赎回，解救

参考例句：

• We'd better arrange the ransom right away.我们最好马上把索取赎金的事安排好。
• The kidnappers exacted a ransom of 10000 from the family.绑架者向这家人家勒索10000英镑的赎金。

4 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

5 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

6 proscribed   

v.正式宣布（某事物）有危险或被禁止( proscribe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They are proscribed by federal law from owning guns. 根据联邦法律的规定，他们不准拥有枪支。 来自辞典例句
• In earlier days, the church proscribed dancing and cardplaying. 从前，教会禁止跳舞和玩牌。 来自辞典例句

7 complexities   

复杂性(complexity的名词复数)； 复杂的事物

参考例句：

• The complexities of life bothered him. 生活的复杂使他困惑。
• The complexities of life bothered me. 生活的杂乱事儿使我心烦。

8 freelancers   

n.自由作家，自由记者( freelancer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A lot of proof-reading is put out to freelancers. 校对工作有很多是请外人做的。 来自辞典例句
• Its benefits plan for freelancers is highly competitive in the industry. 在本行业内它的福利方案是很有竞争力的。 来自互联网

9 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

10 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

11 kidnappers   

n.拐子，绑匪( kidnapper的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They were freed yesterday by their kidnappers unharmed. 他们昨天被绑架者释放了，没有受到伤害。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The kidnappers had threatened to behead all four unless their jailed comrades were released. 帮匪们曾经威胁说如果印度方面不释放他们的同伙，他们就要将这四名人质全部斩首。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 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。

13 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。