VOA常速- Honoring Victims of Communism

U.S. President Donald Trump highlighted the struggle of those who have lived and continue to live under oppressive 压迫性的 communist regimes 政权, declaring November 7, 2017 a National Day for the Victims of Communism. The date marked 100 years since the Bolshevik Revolution took place in Russia. 

The Revolution, led by Vladimir Lenin, paved the way for the establishment of the Soviet Union. From that day forward mass killings and purges 清洗,肃清异己, man-made famine and the horrors of the infamous Gulag claimed what scholars estimate as 20 to 30 million deaths in the U.S.S.R.

In an official White House statement, President Trump honored victims of all communist regimes, noting that communism is “a political philosophy 哲学 incompatible 不兼容的 with liberty 自由, prosperity 繁荣, and the dignity of human life.”

“Over the past century,” wrote President Trump, “Communist totalitarian 极权主义的 regimes around the world have killed more than 100 million people and subjected countless more to exploitation 剥削, violence, and untold 难以名状难以估量的,数不清的 devastation 破坏. 

These movements, under the false pretense of liberation, systematically robbed innocent people of their God-given rights of free worship, freedom of association, and countless other rights we hold sacrosanct 神圣不可侵犯的. Citizens yearning for freedom were subjugated 征服,使屈服 by the state through the use of coercion 强迫, violence, and fear.”

The 100 million victims of communism include individuals who have died over the last century at the hands of communist regimes. However, the National Day for the Victims of Communism also honors survivors of communist regimes and those who continue to live under them.

“Today,” wrote President Trump, “We remember those who have died and all who continue to suffer under communism. In their memory and in honor of the indomitable 不屈不挠的 spirit of those who have fought courageously to spread freedom and opportunity around the world, our Nation reaffirms its steadfast 坚定的,坚贞不渝的  resolve to shine the light of liberty for all who yearn for a brighter, freer future.”