尽管中国已出台的禁止醉酒驾车的法律颇为严厉,但中国领导人目前正在考虑是否要进一步加大惩罚醉驾的力度。
Under current rules, intoxicated drivers with blood-alcohol concentrations between 0.02% and 0.08% (20-80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood) , are penalized with license suspensions of three to six months and fines of up to 500 yuan, or roughly $77. People caught driving with blood-alcohol levels of 0.08% and above the most common standard for drunk driving in the U.S. -- can be detained for up to 15 days and fined up to 2000 yuan.
根据现行法律,如果测定醉酒司机的血液酒精浓度在0.02%和0.08%之间(每100毫升血液中含有20至80毫克酒精),该司机将被吊销驾驶证三到六个月,并被处以最高人民币500元的罚金(约合77美元)。如司机的血液酒精浓度在0.08%(美国醉驾最常见的标准)及以上,将被拘留至多15天,并处于最高2000元的罚金。
According to a report in the state-run China Daily, legislators in Beijing are debating a new law that would up the maximum fine for drunk driving to 5,000 yuan, or nearly $770, and allow authorities to revoke the offender's license for up to 10 years.
据中国官方英文报纸《中国日报》(China Daily)的报道,中国立法者正在讨论是否要出台新法,将对醉驾司机的最高罚金提高至5,000元(近770美元),并允许有关当局吊销肇事者驾驶证的时间长达10年。
The report does not say when lawmakers will announce a final decision.
报道没有提及立法者何时会宣布最终决定。
Consideration of the new law comes as the number of cars in China has exploded. By the end of 2010, there were more than 200 million cars plying China's roads, with another 20 million more expected to be added this year, China Daily reports.
Cara Anna/Associated Press在这张2010年10月29日拍摄的照片中,陈广乾在河北省保定市一家旅馆展示女儿陈晓凤的照片.陈晓凤在一起交通肇事逃逸事故中丧命.这起案件在数月之内成为全国舆论热点,因为据报导称,意欲逃离的驾驶员在遭到现场目击者阻拦后大喊“我爸是李刚”.而李刚正是保定市北市区公安局副局长.立法者是在中国汽车保有量出现爆炸性增长时考虑出台新法的。《中国日报》报道称,截至2010年底,中国机动车保有量已突破2亿辆,预计今年还将再增加2,000万辆。
With the increase in cars, the number of drunk drivers has also been on the rise. Police caught 526,000 boozing cruisers in 2010, up 68% from the year earlier, according to the Ministry of Public Security.
随着汽车保有量的增加,醉驾司机的数量也随之增多。据公安部的统计,2010年,警方共查处了52.6万起酒后驾车行为,较2009年增加了68%。
After doing little to address the problem in the early years of the car boom, China has recently begun to put its foot down on drunk driving. In 2009, Chinese courts handed the death sentence to a 30-year-old company executive who killed four people and injured one more while driving drunk in the western city of Chengdu. The man, Sun Weiming, appealed the decision and was resentenced to life in prison.
在汽车销量迅速增加的最初几年,中国几乎未采取任何措施来处理醉驾问题,不过最近却开始对此采取强硬态度。2009年,中国法院对于30岁的公司高管孙伟铭在成都醉驾致四死一伤案一审判处死刑,经孙伟铭上诉后,二审改判为无期徒刑。
Despite such penalties, drunk driving continues to be a problem. The China Daily reports that 65,000 people were killed in traffic accidents last year. It does not specify the number of deaths caused by drunk driving.
尽管有这样的惩处,醉驾行为仍屡禁不止。《中国日报》报道称,去年中国共有6.5万人死于交通事故,但并没有具体指出其中多少人死于醉驾。
One of China's most infamous drunk-driving incidents occurred last October, when 23-year-old Li Qiming killed a college student while driving under the influence. Mr. Li was cruising around the Hebei University campus when he struck two roller-skating students with his Volkswagen sedan, killing one of them. Mr. Li, whose father, Li Gang, was a deputy chief of a district police bureau, drove on. He was later stopped by university guards, to whom he shouted: "Charge me if you dare. My father is Li Gang." That line soon became catchphrase for abuse of power as the case sparked widespread outrage online.
去年10月,中国还发生了一起最臭名昭著的醉驾事故。23岁的李启明醉酒驾车,撞死了一位在校大学生。他当时开着一辆德国大众(Volkswagen)轿车在河北大学闲逛,撞倒了两个正在滑旱冰的学生,导致其中一人死亡。李启明仗着自己的父亲李刚是当地某区公安局副局长,无视自己的撞人行为,继续开车前行。当被学校保安拦下时,他叫嚣道:有本事你们告去,我爸是李刚。这句话迅速蹿红,成为权力滥用的代名词,并在网上引发众怒。
To the consternation of many, Li Qiming was eventually convicted of "causing traffic casualties," a light charge carrying a maximum sentence of seven years behind bars,
让很多人错愕的是,李启明最终按“交通肇事”罪论处。这是一个较轻的罪名,最高可判入狱七年。
Alcohol companies that operate in China are becoming increasingly aware of the problem. The world's biggest brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev is reviving next week an advertising campaign it launched in 2010, reminding China's Budweiser drinkers to tap a designated driver when planning to imbibe out on the town.
在中国经营的酒类企业开始越来越意识到醉驾问题。全球最大的啤酒公司安海斯-布希公司(Anheuser-Busch InBev) 2010年打出的一部广告将于下周再次播出,提醒那些喝百威啤酒(Budweiser)的中国人,当他们准备在城里开怀痛饮时,别忘了找一个“友情代驾”,送大家回家。
The ad features Chinese comedian Eason Chan in a loud bar, attempting to tell his friend that he can't drink because he's driving. He gestures as though he's driving and it catches on as a dance in the bar.
这则广告由香港歌手陈奕迅(Eason Chan)出演。他在一个吵闹的酒吧里,试图用动作告诉友人,今天不能喝酒,因为他要开车。这个动作引起了酒吧众人的纷纷效仿,大家跟着他舞动起来。