British Official Calls for Tough New Anti-Terror Powers

British Official Calls for Tough New Anti-Terror Powers

Tom Rivers

Britain's Home Secretary David Blunkett called Wednesday for tougher new powers to combat terrorism. But he acknowledged in parliament that finding the right balance between greater vigilance and safeguarding civil liberties would not be easy.

David Blunkett said he believes a terror attack in Britain is inevitable¹. He said it is not a question if such an attack will happen, but rather when it might occur.

In the House of Commons, the home secretary outlined a number of options he would like to see debated in the coming months aimed at reducing the chances of a terror attack taking place.

Among the measures he proposed are extending detention² periods for terror suspects, the establishment of secret trials without juries, wider use of phone tap evidence, and a lower standard of proof for convictions.

Mr. Blunkett says these measures are necessary. "The challenge that I think we were faced with post-the 11th of September, 2001, and we are faced again with, in debating this in the months ahead, is how we can deal with a circumstance where we are not picking up prosecution³ and punishment as a way of discouragement. But we are actually trying to get in at the beginning to prevent actions being taken by those for whom prosecution and punishment hold no fear."

But civil rights campaigners say Mr. Blunkett's proposed measures will be counter-productive. Shami Chakrabarti from the London-based human rights group, Liberty, is one of them.

"The experience of Northern Ireland shows that when you detain people without a fair trial, you send a signal to extremists that they are right, that they should take the law into their own hands because there is really no law. And that injustice⁴ actually breeds terrorism. It does not solve it."

She said Britain is holding 14 foreign terror suspects without trial at Belmarsh prison under existing laws.

Mr. Blunkett said the new anti-terrorism measures will be debated for the next six months before they will be placed before parliament for enactment⁵.

 

注释：

Home Secretary  户政局局长

combat [5kCmbEt] v. 与……做斗争

vigilance [5vIdVIlEns] n. 警惕，警觉

safeguard [5seif7^B:d] vt. 维护，保护

inevitable [in5evitEbl] adj. 不可避免的，必然的

House of Commons  下议院

outline [5Eutlain] vt. 描画轮廓，略述

option [5CpFEn] n. 选择，选项

detention [di5tenFEn] n. 拘留，禁闭

trial [5traiEl] n. 审讯，审判

jury [5dVuEri] n. （律）陪审团，评判委员会

conviction [kEn5vikFEn] n. 定罪，宣告有罪

prosecution [7prCsi5kju:FEn] n. 检举，起诉

detain [di5tein] v. 拘留

enactment [I5nAktm(E)nt] n. 设定，制定

1 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

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 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

4 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

5 enactment   

n.演出，担任…角色；制订，通过

参考例句：

• Enactment refers to action.演出指行为的表演。
• We support the call for the enactment of a Bill of Rights.我们支持要求通过《权利法案》的呼声。