联合国秘书长潘基文2012年世界海事日致辞（中英对照）

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世界海事日致辞

27 September, 2012

2012年9月27日

When the passenger liner Titanic departed from Southampton on 10 April 1912 on her first transatlantic voyage, no one could imagine the drama that would unfold over the next four days.  After the ship hit an iceberg and sank, with the loss of more than 1,500 lives, the story of that ill-fated ship became etched forever in the public consciousness.

　　1912年4月10日，泰坦尼克号客轮驶离南安普敦，开始了横渡大西洋的处女航。当时谁也不可能想象其后4天会发生的惨剧。客轮撞上冰山，沉没海底，1 500多人丧生。那艘客轮的不幸遭遇永远铭刻在公众心中。

Undoubtedly the most important legacy of the Titanic disaster was an urgent acceleration in the process of setting and implementing international standards and procedures for maritime activity.  The first international conference on the safety of life at sea was held in London in January 1914.  Its outcome – the Convention on Safety of Life at Sea – remains the leading international treaty on maritime safety.  The task of keeping it updated, and maintaining its development in light of technological advances, falls to a United Nations agency, the International Maritime Organization.

　　毫无疑问，泰坦尼克号灾难留给人们最重要的教训是迫切需要加快进程，制定和实施海上活动的国际标准和程序。1914年1月，首次海上人命安全国际会议在伦敦举行。《海上人命安全公约》作为会议产生的成果，至今依然是关于海上安全的首要国际条约。不断更新《公约》并根据技术进步推动《公约》向前发展，这项任务落到了联合国机构国际海事组织的肩上。

Each successive generation brings new challenges.  In recent years, the passenger shipping sector has seen phenomenal growth on all fronts – numbers of passengers, numbers of ships, new destinations and, perhaps most significant of all, in ship sizes.  And despite advances in technology, accidents continue to occur, as demonstrated when the Costa Concordia ran aground in Italy earlier this year.

　　每代人都带来新的挑战。近年来，客轮航运部门突飞猛进，全面发展——乘客人数、船舶数量、新开辟的目的地，也许最重要的是船舶规模，无一不在增长。尽管技术不断进步，但事故仍继续发生。今年年初，歌诗达协和号在意大利搁浅，就是明证。

Nevertheless, thanks largely to the IMO regulatory regime, shipping today is safer and more environmentally friendly than it has ever been.  New regulations for passenger ships were adopted by the IMO in 2006 and entered into force in 2010.  They ensure that all new passenger vessels are constructed to the highest possible standards.  A century after the Titanic was lost in the icy waters of the North Atlantic, the IMO is striving to ensure continual improvement in safety at sea.  Its work is as important now as ever. 

　　尽管如此，今天的航运要比以往任何时候都更加安全，更为环保。这主要归功于海事组织的监管机制。2006年，海事组织通过新的客轮条例，并于2010年生效。条例确保所有新的客轮都必须根据最高标准建造。泰坦尼克号在北大西洋冰海中沉没，至今已有百年，如今，海事组织正在发奋努力，确保不断改进海上安全。海事组织的工作一如既往，依然有着重要意义。