监狱里养宠物有利于囚犯改造?

Prison officials in France have praised a scheme, that allows inmates to keep pets, for having a positive effect.

法国的监狱官员们推崇一个计划-让犯人养宠物，以此给他们带来些积极的影响。

The Animal Affinity Club, which is run at Strasbourg's prison, sees inmates spending one hour with animals a day. Mediators and prisoners insist that the project is helping with rehabilitation.

这个叫做"Animal Affinity Club"的俱乐部在斯特拉斯堡监狱里，犯人在里面每天花1小时的时间陪宠物。调教员和犯人都认为该项目有助于犯人改造。

"I know that I was very hot-tempered and this has really calmed me down. It lets me see other things than the walls. I really think that when I get out of here I'll take the animal with me," said one anonymous prisoner.

一名不愿透露姓名的犯人说：“我知道我脾气很暴躁，而这（养宠物）能让我冷静下来，让我看到除了墙以外的东西。我真的在想，当我出狱的时候我会把这小家伙儿一起带走。”

The animals include rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas and birds, and each prisoner is responsible for feeding and watering their own pets.

这些动物中有兔子，天竺鼠，龙猫和鸟类。每个囚犯负责给自己的宠物喂食喂水。

Organiser Patricia Arnoux says being with the animals has helped some inmates to become more tolerant: "Well I would say that there are three main effects: the animal makes relations much calmer between the prisoners and also between the prisoners and the guards. It really lowers the tension in an area which already stands out in terms of violence, and it brings the person to work on a real job in terms of responsibility and self-confidence".

项目的组织者帕特里夏说，和小动物在一起，一些囚犯变得更有耐心了。他还说：“（养宠物）主要有三个主要影响：动物使得囚犯和狱警之间的关系平和了许多。在这个暴力行为高发的地方，这确实能够缓和这里的紧张局势。还有就是，这给那些犯人带来了一些切实的事情去做，一些有关于责任感和自信心的事情。”

The Animal Affinity Club now aims to spread the concept to other prisons and institutions such as nursing homes.

这个俱乐部目前正打算把这个主意分享给其他监狱以及诸如养老院等机构。

Listening Notes:
behind bars: 在狱中
be attached to:迷上
cell: （单人）牢房
morale: 纪律；道德准则；士气