VOA慢速英语2015 柬埔寨工人死亡的调查进展甚微

 

AS IT IS 2015-01-24 Little Progress in Investigation¹ of Cambodian Workers' Death 柬埔寨工人死亡的调查进展甚微

Last January, representatives from more than 20 of the world’s largest clothing manufacturers wrote a strong letter to the Cambodian government. The companies asked the government to investigate the killings² of at least five garment workers. Cambodian security forces shot and killed the workers during violent demonstrations³ earlier in the month.

But one year after the letter was sent, it seems little progress has been made in the investigation.

The killings of the garment workers were reported throughout the world. The workers died while protesting in support of an increase in the lowest wage permitted under Cambodian law. At the time, the minimum wage was about $100 a month.                                  

The violence came at a time of political unrest in the country because of disputed elections. After the killings, many well-known clothing manufacturers demanded an investigation. The companies included H&M, adidas, PUMA⁴ and Levi-Strauss. All of them make clothing in Cambodian garment factories.

The manufacturers sent a letter to Prime Minister Hun Sen. The letter demanded that the government punish the killers⁵. But one year later, the killers have not been charged.

A spokesman for Cambodia’s Interior Ministry⁷ told VOA that the government sent its request for an investigation to the courts nearly a year ago. VOA sought repeatedly and unsuccessfully to speak with a court official about what had happened to the request.                                                               

Dave Welsh leads the Cambodia office of the Solidarity⁸ Center, a not-for-profit group. He told VOA that he believes there has been no true effort to hold anyone responsible.

“But not only have there been no investigations⁹ -- there’s complete impunity¹⁰ -- but there’s also been no compensation. So you have the families of the deceased and the families of the injured. The families of the deceased have lost, basically, economic security for the foreseeable future. The families of the injured and the injured themselves have absorbed enormous healthcare costs.”

Garment manufacturing is important to Cambodia’s economy. Garment factories employ 600,000 people. That is more than any other employer. The garment industry is also Cambodia’s largest source of money from other countries. The factories export more than $5 billion worth of clothing, mostly to the United States and European Union countries.                                              

VOA spoke⁶ with representatives of four of the companies that signed the letter: PUMA and adidas, both based in Germany; Levi-Strauss, based in the United States; and H&M, based in Sweden.             

H&M refused to comment. PUMA said it would only talk about the letter in partnership¹¹ with the other businesses that signed it. A spokesperson for Levi-Strauss told VOA the company was continuing to persuade the Cambodian government about the need for an investigation. An official with adidas told VOA that the company had raised the issue with the Ministry of Justice up to the end of last year. The official said in an e-mail that adidas is waiting for an answer from government officials.

Joachim Baron¹² von Marschall is the German ambassador to Cambodia. He says German embassy officials have spoken about the investigation with representatives of German clothing companies. And, he says, they have taken part in talks on the issue with ambassadors from other EU countries and with the Cambodian government.

Mu Sochua is a leading member of Cambodia’s political opposition¹³ and serves in parliament. She has worked for many years to support and protect garment workers. She says she will meet with families of the victims in the next few weeks. She says she wants to know if they want to make an official complaint about the investigation with parliament.

“If it is closed, then it should be made public -- the results should be made public. If it is still an ongoing¹⁴ case, we should know what the investigating judge is doing -- at least what he is doing, not this total silence.”

Mu Sochua says she wants the manufacturers to put more pressure on the government to investigate the killings. She says the lack of progress is not surprising. She says the Cambodian court system quickly investigates the government’s opponents, but ignores illegal actions by powerful people. She says the way the government investigates possible crimes must be changed.

“But what I’m trying to work on is to work toward some form of reform in the judiciary system, and some kind of commitment. Therefore, we continue to speak for and on behalf of the victims and on behalf of the nation as members of parliament.”

Dave Welsh notes that failure to punish the killers is just one of many of the government’s illegal actions.

“And on all these other issues -- the shootings, the deaths, the convictions, wrongful convictions in my mind, of 23 activists¹⁵, massive terminations, lawsuits¹⁶ against every independent trade union leader in the country that are still ongoing -- there’s been no resolution. All these things are still outstanding.”

He says all of these failures should be seen against a backdrop of threats against Cambodia’s labor¹⁷ unions.

Words in this Story

impunity – n. freedom from punishment, harm, or loss; usually used in the phrase “with impunity”

deceased – adj. no longer living

foreseeable – adj. can be seen but which has not yet happened

absorbe(d) – v. to accept or deal with (something that is difficult or harmful)

enormous – adj. very great in size or amount

ignore(s) – v. to do nothing about or in response to (something or someone)

commitment – n. a promise to do or give something

termination(s) – n. the act of making a person leave a job; the act of firing or dismissing someone

outstanding – adj. continuing to exist

1 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

2 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

3 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。

4 puma   

美洲豹

参考例句：

• The police and the volunteers combed the forest for the lost puma from the zoo.警察和志愿者们在森林里到处寻找动物园迷失的美洲狮。
• A businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree.一位商人去钓鱼，看见那只美洲狮在树上。

5 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 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。

8 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

9 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

10 impunity   

n.(惩罚、损失、伤害等的)免除

参考例句：

• You will not escape with impunity.你不可能逃脱惩罚。
• The impunity what compulsory insurance sets does not include escapement.交强险规定的免责范围不包括逃逸。

11 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。

12 baron   

n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王

参考例句：

• Henry Ford was an automobile baron.亨利·福特是一位汽车业巨头。
• The baron lived in a strong castle.男爵住在一座坚固的城堡中。

13 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

14 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

15 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》

16 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

17 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。