On August 12, 2020, two groups of girls went out to protest in Minsk, the capital city of Belarus. They put on white clothes and went barefoot out into the street. In the morning, some went to Komarovskiy Market in the center of town. Later that day, the other group gathered with flowers at the eternal flame under the victory monument. They stood together holding hands, and they started to sing the Belarusian lullaby, waiting for the police cars to arrive. They knew the police would pick them up just like that: barefoot with flowers in their hands, that they would take them to the police station, beat them up and try to humiliate them. And yet they did it anyway.
2020 年 8 月 12 日, 两批女孩在白俄罗斯首都 明斯克上街抗议。 她们身穿白色衣服, 赤脚走到街上。 早上, 一部分人去了市中心的 科马罗夫斯基市场。 随后, 另一批人捧着鲜花 聚集在胜利纪念碑下的永恒火焰前。 她们手拉手站在一起 开始唱着白俄罗斯摇篮曲, 等待着警察的到来。 她们知道自己会遭到警察逮捕: 光着脚,手里拿着鲜花, 警察会把她们带到警局, 痛打并试图羞辱她们, 但她们还是这样做了。
This year, something changed in Belarus, a country of more than nine million people that has been ruled by an authoritarian leader since 1994. These young women were protesting the latest rigged election result, which had taken [place] just a few days earlier. Their small expressions of protest very quickly expanded into massive, peaceful, women-led demonstrations all across the country.
今年,白俄罗斯发生了一些变化, 这是一个人口超过九百万的国家, 自 1994 年以来,一直由独裁者所统治。 而这些年轻女性正在抗议 最近的选举结果受到了操纵, 此事就发生在几天前。 她们小规模的抗议很快就演变成 由女性领导的大规模和平示威游行 席卷了全国。
Within just a few days, a few hundred thousand people took to the streets and demonstrations have continued ever since, the likes of which Belarus has never seen before. All this despite the fact that the president proclaimed himself reelected and that more than 10,000 people have been detained, hundreds tortured and at least six killed.
在短短几天内, 成百上千民众走上街头抗议, 示威活动一直持续至今, 白俄罗斯从未出现过这样的情况。 尽管, 总统宣布自己连任, 超过一万人被拘留, 数以百计的人受到折磨, 而且至少六人被杀害。
Many people wonder why the people of Belarus are speaking up now. What makes them keep taking to the streets despite unprecedented police violence, despite state lawlessness? The answer I hear the most is that people have become fearless, and it's something we have become together.
许多人想知道为什么 白俄罗斯人现在要发声, 是什么促使他们不断走上街头 尽管警察动用了史无前例的暴力, 尽管政府已无法无天? 我听到最多的答案 是人们变得无所畏惧, 我们如今站在了一起。
Because fear is the province of one. It feeds on isolation. It doesn't discriminate: men, women, children, elderly -- all of us can feel fear, but only as long as we are on our own. Fearlessness takes two. It only works if and when we show up for each other. Show up so that your neighbor, your colleague, your friend has courage. And they will do the same for you.
因为恐惧只与个人有关, 它产生于孤立。 它会不区分: 男女老少—— 所有人都可以感受到恐惧, 但只有当我们孤身一人时才切身体会。 而想要无所畏惧需要两个人, 只有当我们为对方 挺身而出时,它才会显现。 挺身而出,这样你的邻居、 同事、朋友才有勇气, 也才愿意对你做相同的事。
A lot has been made of my own role in the presidential election of August 2020. How I stepped in to run for my husband, Sergei, when he was jailed and it became clear that the authorities would deny him his chance to run himself; how I rightfully won the election and became the elected leader of a democratic Belarus, but the official results only gave me 10 percent of the vote and I was forced into exile with my children; how I still fight for those who voted for me and whose voice the regime wants to steal; how "fearless" I am.
在 2020 年 8 月总统大选期间, 我做了很多事情。 当我的丈夫谢尔盖被捕入狱时, 我是如何介入竞选的, 而且很明显当局试图否认他的参选机会; 以及我是如何赢得选举, 并成为民主白俄罗斯的当选领导人, 但官方只统计了我 10% 的选票, 我和我的孩子们被迫流亡海外; 我仍然在为那些投票给我的人而战, 而这些人的声音是政权想要窃取的; 我是多么的 “无所畏惧” 。
But there were many moments when I was frightened, and I wanted to step down. I was threatened and forced to believe that I'm alone in this fight. And yet the more cities I visited, the more people showed up for the rallies, the less fear I had. And then in the days before the election in Minsk, 60,000 people came to show their support for me, and I was no longer afraid.
但有很多时候我都很害怕, 而且我想要退出。 我受到威胁, 并被迫相信,我是一个人在战斗。 然而,我去的城市越多, 参加集会的人就越多, 我的恐惧就越少。 在明斯克选举前的那几天 有六万人赶来支持我, 而我不再恐惧了。
I never wanted to do any of this. I was never overly political, and I never planned to run for office. I wanted to be a mom and a wife. But by fate and the will of my people, I was elevated to this position. And I accept this with a sense of duty and pride. I will not give up. And I will show up for people, because they show up for me. Our courage is born from unity. Our solidarity is our strength.
我从没想过要做这些, 我从想过多介入政治, 并且我从未打算竞选公职, 我只想做一名母亲和妻子。 但由于命运和人民的意愿, 我被提拔到这个位置。 而我也带着责任感和自豪感接受了这一切, 我不会放弃。 我会为人民挺身而出, 因为他们为我挺身而出。 我们的勇气来自团结, 团结就是我们的力量。
I also now understand that being fearless is a commitment. It is a decision you make every single day. It is a responsibility you take -- responsibility for one another. In this regard, I'm no different from my fellow Belarusians. Their support is tangible. Their solidarity grows in progression. When there are two of you, you are daring. When you're 100, you are brave. When there are thousands of you, you are fearless. And once you are tens of thousands, you become invincible.
我现在也明白了, 无所畏惧是一种承诺。 是一个你每天都要做的决定。 是一个你要承担的责任—— 对彼此的责任。 在这方面,我和我的白俄罗斯 同胞们没有什么不同。 他们的支持是切实可见的, 他们的团结是在进步中成长的。 当你有两个人的时候, 你会有胆量。 当你有一百人的时候 ,你会有勇气。 当你有上千人的时候, 你会无所畏惧。 而一旦你有了数万人追随, 你将不可战胜。
Thank you.
谢谢。