六個問題帶你迅速瞭解巴西總統彈劾案
Q. Why is Dilma Rousseff facing impeachment proceedings?
問：迪爾瑪·羅塞夫(Dilma Rousseff)爲何面臨彈劾程序？
She is charged with violating budgetary laws in order to conceal a deficit before what she anticipated would be a tough 2014 re-election campaign, borrowing money from banks that the executive branch controls to fund domestic programs, and making changes to the federal budget without congressional approval.
她被控違反了預算法，目的是在她預計會很激烈的2014年連任競選前掩蓋財政赤字，從行政部門掌控的銀行借錢以便爲國內項目提供資金，且未經國會批准擅自修改聯邦預算。
Q. What did the Senate vote on?
問：參議院投票表決的議案是什麼？
The Senate voted on whether to start a trial of Ms. Rousseff. Last week, a Senate committee formally presented charges against her when it approved a document detailing the accusations.
參議院投票表決的內容是是否開始審判羅塞夫。上週，參議院的一個委員會正式對羅塞夫提出指控，批准了一份詳細介紹相關指控的文件。
Q. What exactly are those charges?
問：具體是什麼指控？
Ms. Rousseff is accused of violating Articles 85 and 167 of Brazil’s 1988 Constitution and the 1950 Law of Impeachment in making changes to the budget without congressional authorization. She is also accused of violating the Constitution and the same 1950 law in borrowing money from an institution that the state controls.
羅塞夫被控未經國會授權擅自修改預算，違反了巴西1988年憲法的第85和第167條，以及1950年的《彈劾法》(Law of Impeachment)。她還被控從政府控制的一個機構借錢，同樣控違反了憲法和《彈劾法》。
Q. Why are these potentially impeachable offenses?
問：這些爲什麼是可能導致總統被彈劾的犯罪行爲？
The 1950 law defines “crimes of responsibility,” identifying more than 50 situations that call for impeachment. One is violating the annual budgetary law. The 1988 Constitution applies because it includes “crimes of responsibility.”
1950年那項法律對“職務犯罪”進行了界定，規定了50多種會招致彈劾的情況。其中之一是違反年度預算法。1988年制定的憲法適用是因爲它包含了“職務犯罪”。
The 2000 law of fiscal responsibility makes it illegal for the executive branch to borrow money from financial institutions it controls. The law also requires congressional approval of any changes in an annual budget after it has been approved.
2000年制定的財政責任法規定，行政部門從其掌控的金融機構借錢屬於違法行爲。該法還要求年度預算在獲得批准後，任何修改均需獲得國會的同意。
Q. Can Ms. Rousseff go to prison if the Senate convicts her?
問：如果參議院判其有罪，羅塞夫是否會入獄？
No, but she must step aside temporarily while the trial is underway and would have to resign if convicted.
不會，但在審判過程中，她必須暫時停職，如果被判有罪則不得不辭職。
“The nature of these crimes are administrative crimes,” said Oscar Vilhena Vieira, a constitutional law professor at Fundação Getulio Vargas, a university in São Paulo. “They are not penal crimes, so you cannot be put in prison because of them, but you can lose your mandate.”
“這些犯罪行爲的本質是行政犯罪，”聖保羅瓦加斯商學院(Fundação Getulio Vargas)研究憲法的教授奧斯卡·維列納·維埃拉(Oscar Vilhena Vieira)說。“不是刑事犯罪，所以不會因此入獄，但可能會失去權力。”
Q. So is the Senate trial different from a criminal trial in a court?
問：所以參議院的審判不同於法庭的刑事審判對嗎？
Yes. This is a political trial, and the standard of proof for conviction is less than it would be in a courtroom trial. If Ms. Rousseff were tried by the country’s Supreme Court over these same offenses, she would be likely to face better odds of obtaining a favorable result.
是的。這是政治審判，證明有罪的標準比法庭審判低。如果因爲同樣的罪名接受最高法院的審判，羅塞夫獲得有利結果的機率可能會更高。
That also means that congressional support is crucial. “If she had a solid majority in Congress, these acts would be forgivable,” said Brasílio Sallum Jr., a professor of sociology at the University of São Paulo and an expert in Brazil’s political processes.
這也意味着獲得國會的支持至關重要。“如果有絕大多數國會議員的支持，這些行爲都是可原諒的，”聖保羅大學(University of São Paulo)社會學教授、研究巴西政治進程的專家小布拉西利奧·塞盧姆(Brasílio Sallum Jr.)說。
Ms. Rousseff’s problem, he said, is that, “the majority support she had in Congress at the beginning of her presidency no longer exists.”
他表示，羅塞夫的問題是，“她開始擔任總統時得到了國會多數人的支持，但現在這些支持已不復存在。”
