搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。
(单词翻译)
By Douglas Bakshian
Manila
26 June 2006
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo1, center, signs into law the bill abolishing death penalty as Senator Juan Flavier, left, and House Speaker Jose De Venecia applause during a ceremony Malacanang palace in Manila
The Philippines has become the 125th nation to abolish the death penalty, with President Gloria Arroyo signing a law ending capital punishment following its earlier passage by the legislature.
--------
At a signing ceremony in the Presidential Palace, Mrs. Arroyo hailed the new law as a big step forward for the Philippines, but also assured critics she will remain tough on crime.
"I allay2 the concerns of those who think that the abolition3 of the death penalty opens the flood gates to heinous4 acts," said President Arroyo. "We shall continue to devote the increasing weight of our resources to the prevention and control of serious crimes rather than take the lives of those who commit them."
it. It is a flagship bill," said Rosales. "I know that the direction and the trend is towards more rehabilitative5 and restorative justice rather than pure punitive6 justice. And this is the trend of civilized7 nations, and I am happy that the Philippines has taken a step forward in that direction."
Ricardo Saludo, secretary in charge of the Cabinet, says a change in the social and legal climate likely influenced the Congress to finally pass the legislation.
"It has really emerged that what is important in fighting crime is the quality of enforcement and cooperation between the community and the police, rather than the strictness of the penalty," noted8 Saludo. "On top of that, this year, the Supreme9 Court came out with its own ruling that the death penalty is against the constitution."
The opinion of the Catholic Church may also have influenced the issue. The Philippines is a predominantly Roman Catholic nation and the Vatican's envoy10 to Manila has congratulated the president and lawmakers for abolishing capital punishment.
But not everyone is happy. Leaders of anti-crime groups say the government acted without consulting them. Dante Jimenez, whose brother was killed by a drug syndicate in 1990, heads Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption11. He says the move comes at a bad time, when terrorists, criminal syndicates and kidnappers12 are active and the police and justice system is weak.
"Victims of heinous crimes do not have, any more, the legal weapon to penalize13 those who have hurt them, who have inflicted14 harm to their loved ones," commented Jimenez.
Jimenez says he is mobilizing victims, urging people to arm themselves against criminals and to pursue preventative measures to fight hard-core criminals.
Violent crime is rife15 in the Philippines. The murder rate is high, with guns and explosives being readily available and often used to settle disputes. Kidnapping for ransom16 is also common.
With the new law, the Philippines becomes the 25th country in the Asia-Pacific region to end capital punishment in law or in practice, according to Amnesty International. However, the death penalty is still in place in many of Asia's biggest nations, including Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand and China, which executes more people than any other country
1 arroyo | |
n.干涸的河床,小河 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
2 allay | |
v.消除,减轻(恐惧、怀疑等) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
3 abolition | |
n.废除,取消 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
4 heinous | |
adj.可憎的,十恶不赦的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
5 rehabilitative | |
使复原的,复职的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
6 punitive | |
adj.惩罚的,刑罚的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
7 civilized | |
a.有教养的,文雅的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
8 noted | |
adj.著名的,知名的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
9 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
10 envoy | |
n.使节,使者,代表,公使 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
11 corruption | |
n.腐败,堕落,贪污 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
12 kidnappers | |
n.拐子,绑匪( kidnapper的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
13 penalize | |
vt.对…处以刑罚,宣告…有罪;处罚 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
14 inflicted | |
把…强加给,使承受,遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
15 rife | |
adj.(指坏事情)充斥的,流行的,普遍的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
16 ransom | |
n.赎金,赎身;v.赎回,解救 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。