VOA标准英语2008年-US Human Trafficking Report Faults Gulf Allies

By David Gollust
Washington
04 June 2008

The State Department's annual report on human trafficking, issued Wednesday, gave the lowest rankings to some U.S. Arab allies, including Saudi Arabia. But several countries were credited with an improved performance on the issue, including Venezuela, Malaysia and Madagascar. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.

The annual report is mandated¹ by an act of Congress, and according to both U.S. officials and non-governmental activists² has become the most authoritative³ guide available to the global problem of human trafficking.

Introducing the 2008 report at a State Department news conference, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the report has elevated the level of world attention to the problems of trafficking including sex slavery and forced labor⁴:

"Globally, human trafficking is a multi-dimensional threat. It deprives people of their human rights and dignity. It increases global health risks. It bankrolls the growth of organized crime and it undermines the rule of law. In recent years we've witnessed a hopeful global movement uniting civil society, governments, and international organizations - not just to confront this crime, but to abolish it," she said.

The 2008 report rated the anti-trafficking performance of 153 countries around the world and 14 were placed in the lowest category, Tier Three, which makes them subject to possible U.S. sanctions.

Key U.S. Gulf⁵ ally Saudi Arabia was put in Tier Three for the fourth consecutive⁶ year, along with fellow Arab states Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Syria, Algeria.

Burma, Cuba, Iran, Sudan and North Korea - all countries whose human rights records have been subject to strong U.S. criticism - were also listed. Moldova, Fiji and Papua-New Guinea were added to Tier Three for the first time.

The director of the State Department's human trafficking monitoring office, Mark Lagon, said the problem affects virtually every country around the world, including the United States.

He said U.S. intelligence estimates are that some 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year, 80 percent of them women, and that millions more are exploited within their home countries.

Lagon stressed anti-trafficking success stories, citing among others Mexico, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, whose ranking improved.

He said Madagascar, which jumped into the highest category, proves that the problem can be tackled with national will, even by a country with minimal⁷ resources.

On the negative side, he said Moldova fell to Tier Three, reflecting that central European government's failure to address trafficking-related corruption⁸.

He said China remained on the so-called Tier Two Watch List - just above the lowest ranking - because of insufficient⁹ efforts to protect trafficking victims, most notably¹⁰ North Koreans who have fled into northeastern China.

"These North Koreans seek refuge in China. But many are preyed¹¹ upon by Chinese traffickers, who sell them into sexual servitude as 'wives' - with quotation¹² marks around wives - or into prostitution. When Chinese authorities find these trafficking victims they often send them back to North Korea where they face harsh punishment. The victims are punished rather than cared for," she said.

The U.S. anti-trafficking director said another Asian power, India, made some progress but remains¹³ on the watch list because its failure to recognize bonded¹⁴ labor as a form of trafficking.

Lagon said the cases of the Tier Three countries will be reviewed later this year for possible U.S. sanctions. He acknowledged that actions against some U.S. allies have been waived¹⁵ in the past, but said the real penalty may be the embarrassing status of the Tier Three listing itself.

1 mandated   

adj. 委托统治的

参考例句：

• Mandated desegregation of public schools. 命令解除公立学校中的种族隔离
• Britain was mandated to govern the former colony of German East Africa. 英国受权代管德国在东非的前殖民地。

2 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》

3 authoritative   

adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的

参考例句：

• David speaks in an authoritative tone.大卫以命令的口吻说话。
• Her smile was warm but authoritative.她的笑容很和蔼，同时又透着威严。

4 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。

5 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

6 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

7 minimal   

adj.尽可能少的，最小的

参考例句：

• They referred to this kind of art as minimal art.他们把这种艺术叫微型艺术。
• I stayed with friends, so my expenses were minimal.我住在朋友家，所以我的花费很小。

8 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

9 insufficient   

adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的

参考例句：

• There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
• In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。

10 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

11 preyed   

v.掠食( prey的过去式和过去分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• Remorse preyed upon his mind. 悔恨使他内心痛苦。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He had been unwise and it preyed on his conscience. 他做得不太明智，这一直让他良心不安。 来自辞典例句

12 quotation   

n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情

参考例句：

• He finished his speech with a quotation from Shakespeare.他讲话结束时引用了莎士比亚的语录。
• The quotation is omitted here.此处引文从略。

13 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

14 bonded   

n.有担保的，保税的，粘合的

参考例句：

• The whisky was taken to bonded warehouses at Port Dundee.威士忌酒已送到邓迪港的保稅仓库。
• This adhesive must be applied to both surfaces which are to be bonded together.要粘接的两个面都必须涂上这种黏合剂。

15 waived   

v.宣布放弃( waive的过去式和过去分词 )；搁置；推迟；放弃（权利、要求等）

参考例句：

• He has waived all claim to the money. 他放弃了索取这笔钱的权利。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I waived the discourse, and began to talk of my business. 我撇开了这个话题，开始讲我的事情。 来自辞典例句