原文譯文
*註：本文摘自11月23日《紐約時報》
It Was Just Him and His Smiley Face. He’s Charged With Illegal Assembly.
只有他和他的笑臉；他被指控非法集會。
1. Jolovan Wham, a civil rights activist in Singapore, was charged with violating the Public Order Act for holding up acardboardsign with a smiley face on it near a police station in March. The offense involved one man, one piece of cardboard and one smiley face.
新加坡民權活動人士Jolovan Wham被控違反了《公共秩序法》，因為今年3月，他在一家警察局附近舉起了一張畫有笑臉的紙板。此次案件涉事的是一個男人，一張紙板和一個笑臉。
2. On Monday, Jolovan Wham, a civil rights activist, was charged at a court in Singapore with illegal public assembly for holding up a cardboard sign with a smiley face on it near a police station in March. It was a protest of one person. He had, he admitted, drawn the smiley face himself.
周一， Jolovan Wham受新加坡一家法院受到指控，罪名是今年3月在一家警察局附近非法集會，舉著一張畫有笑臉的紙板。這是一次個人抗議。他承認，他畫了這張笑臉。
3.Averseto potential threats to its stable, orderly state, Singapore is bound by strict rules on civil liberties, such as freedom of speech and assembly. Public protest without a permit is allowed in just one spot in the city-state, and only after completing a registration process. The Protection from Online Falsehoods andManipulationAct, which was enacted last year, polices activity online.
為保證其穩定和秩序，新加坡對其公民言論和集會等有嚴格的規定。在新加坡，公眾抗議只能在一個地點進行，而且必須完成登記程序。去年頒布的《防止網絡欺詐和操縱法》對網絡活動進行監管。
4. Mr. Wham said he had held up the smiley face sign in support of two young activists who had been investigated for holding up signs calling for Singapore to fight climate change by reducing the city-state’s dependence on oil.
Wham說，他舉這個笑臉紙牌是在對兩個年輕活動人士表示支持。他們曾因為舉牌呼籲新加坡減少石油依賴以應對氣候變化而受到調查。
5. 「You would think that the Singaporean authorities would be smart enough to not take on such aridiculouscase that will make them alaughingstockaround the world, but they are blinded by their command and controlmind-setthat prefersmaximumresponse to the slightest provocation,」 said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch.
人權監察組織亞洲負責人菲爾·羅伯遜說, 「你可能會覺得新加坡當局肯定不會接管這樣荒謬的案子，畢竟這會讓他們成為全世界的笑柄，但是他們被自己的控制欲蒙蔽了心智，總是對一些小小的抗議反應過激。」
6. Mr. Wham, who wore a smiley face shirt and face mask as he traveled to his court hearing on Monday, was also charged withcontraveningthe Public Order Act for anincidentin 2018 when he held up a typed message on a piece of paper outside the former State Courts building. The message called fordefamationcharges to be dropped against an online media editor and writer who had accused high-ranking government officials of corruption.
Wham穿著一件帶有笑臉的襯衫，戴著口罩出現在法庭的聽證會上，他還因為2018年在前州法院大樓前舉著一張印有字樣的牌子而被控違反公共秩序法案。他當時呼籲撤銷對一名指控政府高官腐敗的網絡媒體編輯和作家的誹謗指控。
7. In both cases, Mr. Wham said he lingered for barely 「more than several seconds,」 just enough time for photographs to be taken and posted on social media. If found guilty, he could be fined up to $3,725 for eachinfraction.
Wham說，在這兩個案件中，他舉牌停留的時間都只有幾秒鐘，僅僅只夠拍照上傳到社交媒體上。如果被判有罪，他將被處以最高3725美元的罰款。
8. 「The Public Order Act was purportedly enacted to preserve public order and the safety of individuals, both of which were not compromised when I took the photos and uploaded them on social media,」 Mr. Wham said. 「The charges demonstrate that our laws have the potential to be applied in ridiculous andoverbearingways.」
Wham 說，「《公共秩序法》據說是為了維護公共秩序和個人安全，但是我拍照並分享到社交媒體這一動作對公共秩序和個人安全都沒有造成任何影響。這些指控表明，我們的法律被荒謬地濫用了。」
9. Public protest without a permit in Singapore is confined to one location, a spot in a park called the Speakers』 Corner. In a statement released on Friday, the police said 「the Speakers』 Corner is the proper avenue for Singaporeans to express their views on issues that concern them, and to allow Singaporeans to conduct assemblies without the need for a permit, subject to certain conditions being met.」
在新加坡，未經許可的公眾抗議活動只能在一個地方進行，那就是公園裡一個叫做「演講角」的地方。警方周五發布的一份聲明中表示，「演講角是新加坡人就自己關注的問題發表意見的地方，讓新加坡人在滿足某些條件的情況下能夠自由舉行集會。」
精讀解析
篇章結構
P1—P2：Jolovan Wham因為舉著一張畫有笑臉的紙板而受到指控。
P3—P5：為了維護穩定和秩序，新加坡對言論自由和集會有嚴格規定。
P6—P8：Wham的行為並未違法新加坡《公共秩序法》。
P9：新加坡的言論自由。
重點單詞
cardboard/'kɑ db d/ n. 硬紙板
【例句】
She brought the shopping home in a cardboard box.
她將買的東西放在紙箱裡帶回家。
averse/ 'v s/ adj. 不願意的；反對的
【例句】
We are averse to such noisy surroundings.
我們不喜歡這麼吵鬧的環境。
Manipulation /m ,n pj 'le ( )n/ n. (熟練的)操作；操縱；控制；(對帳目等的)偽造，篡改
【例句】
Primitive man quickly learned how to manipulate tools.
原始人很快就學會了使用工具。
mind-set/'maindset/ n. 思想的形式
【例句】
These eyes have only one mind set upon us two
眼眸和真心全為你我設定。
ridiculous/r 'd kj l s/ adj. 可笑的, 荒謬的
【例句】
What you are doing borders on the ridiculous.
你所做的事近乎可笑。
laughingstock/'lɑ f st k/ n. 笑柄,受人嘲笑者
【例句】
People might even call her a laughingstock.
人們甚至也許會說她是一個笑話。
maximum/'m ks m m/ adj. 最大值的, 最大量的n. 最大的量、體積、強度等
【例句】
The maximum score on this test is 100.
這份考試的滿分為100分。
contravene/ k ntr 'vi n/ vt. 取消,違反
【例句】
The moves contravene the peace plan agreed by both sides.
這些舉措違反了雙方同意的和平方案。
incident/' ns d( )nt/ n. 事件，事變；插曲adj. 易發生的，伴隨而來的；附帶的；入射的
【例句】
The whole incident was recorded on film.
整個事件都記錄在膠片上了。
defamation/ def 'me ( )n/ n. 誹謗, 中傷
【例句】
She sued the magazine for defamation of her character.
她控告該雜誌誹謗她的人格。
infraction/ n'fr k ( )n/ n. (對規則、法律等的)違背,違犯；犯規,違法
【例句】
By comparison, Google's infraction seems minor.
相比之下，谷歌的違規行為似乎微不足道。
overbear/ v 'be / vt. 壓服；克服；結實過多
【例句】
Promoted too quickly, the conceited young man became overbearing.
提拔得太快, 那個自負的年輕人變得盛氣凌人。
- THE END -
堅持就會有收穫！