A Comparative Study of Two Versions of Foreign Trade Law

秦瑩

【Abstract】In recent years， Chinas foreign trade economy is growing quickly. China has become the largest trade country in goods in the world. In the development of foreign trade， it is necessary to let the people in the world to know Chinas the Foreign Trade Law. Foreign Trade Law has been translated into different versions by scholars. Comparative study of English versions can be more clearly to understand the translation and choose the better version.

【Key words】Legal English； Foreign Trade Law

As time goes by， foreign trade is booming and has made great contributions to economic development. Chinas total import and export reached 4.16 trillion dollars in 2013 and it surpass the United States. China has become the largest trade country in goods in the world.

The Foreign Trade Law of the Peoples Republic of China plays an important role in the international economy. The promulgation of the Foreign Trade Law is conducive to monitor foreign trade for our country and protect the legitimate rights and interests for the trade operators. But， the Foreign Trade Law has been translated into several versions.

This study is a comparative study of two versions of the Foreign Trade Law in lexical and syntactic aspects. One English version is published by the China Legal Publishing House （CLPH）， and the other is the official English version of the website of the Ministry of Commerce （MC）. Some of translation fragments of the same original texts can be used for analysis or comparative analysis. It can make it easier to compare the similarities and differences. Comparative analysis also can point out the fact that sometimes the translation of the terms or phrases which cannot accurately express the original texts.

I. Lexical Aspect

The differences between the two English versions of the Foreign Trade Law are mainly reflected in lexicon. This part will be analyzed from the aspects of archaic words， formal words and technical words.

1.1 Using Archaic Words

There are some archaic words used in English translation of Foreign Trade Law. For examples，

Article 9 Any foreign trade business operator that … or the institution entrusted thereby， unless it is …

This is the English version of the Foreign Trade Law from China Legal Publishing House. “Thereby” is archaic word. It is versus to relate. It refers to the related institutions， such as the administrative department of foreign trade of the State Council in the text. In the version of the Ministry of Commerce official website， the translation does not have archaic word and directly writes， “…under the State Council or its authorized bodies…” which is very common. Another vision useing the archaic word “thereby” can give people a more formal and solemn sense.

1.2 Using Formal Words

V1： The present Law is enacted for the purpose of broadening the opening to the outside world， developing …

V2： This Law is formulated with a view to expanding the opening to the outside world， developing …

This is from article 1 of the Foreign Trade Law. The first English version is from CLPH， the second English version from MC. According to the Oxford Advanced Learners English-Chinese Dictionary， “enact” refer to pass a law or establish a law. “Formulate” refer to create or prepare something carefully and give particular attention to the details and it often used as “formulate a policy”. Therefore， “formulate” is used improperly. According to its definition， “enact” is more appropriate and formal

1.3 Using Technical Words

There are many technical words in legal English， and some technical words are used in the translation process. Some words may have different meanings in different texts.

V1： Where any of the parties concerned of foreign trade business … apply for administrative reconsideration according to law or lodge an administrative action with the peoples court.

V1： The parties in the foreign trade activities may apply for an administrative reconsideration or bring an administrative lawsuit before a peoples court in case of dissatisfaction ….

This is from article 66 of the Foreign Trade Law. The first English version is from the CLPH， the second English version from MC. The general meaning of “action” is behavior， but “action” can be “lawsuit” in this text. And the “action” of this sentence refers to lawsuit.

II. Syntactic Aspect

The two English versions of the Foreign Trade Law have obvious features in syntax. They use a lot of long sentences and passive sentences.

2.1 Using Long Sentences

Long sentences often include a lot of clauses in the legal English. In the Foreign Trade Law， there are also many sentences using of a large number of clauses. Sometimes， there is only one sentence in the legal document， and the sentence often has a number of clauses （Xiao Yunshu， 2007： 179）.

Article 61

V1： Anyone who imports or exports any goods that are banned from import or export or unlawfully imports or exports any goods that are restricted from import or export without approval shall be dealt with and punished by the customs office according to relevant laws or administrative regulations.

V2： Anyone who imports and exports the goods of which import and export is prohibited， or imports and exports the goods of which import and export is restricted without authorization shall be disposed of and punished by the customs in accordance with relevant laws and administrative regulations.

The first English version is from the CLPH， the second English version from MC. These two sentences are very long and contain several attributive clauses. An attributive clause also contains a clause. The law focuses on the fact and logical relationships， so the law has many complex sentences and long sentences. This is also a prominent feature of legal English.

2.2 Using Passive Voice Sentence

Sometimes， using some passive sentences can express more accurately in the legal documents.

Article 36

V1： Anyone who violates the present Law and endangers the foreign trade order shall be made public by way of announcements made by the foreign trade department of the State Council.

V2： The authority responsible for foreign trade under the State Council may give a notice to the public the activities in violation of this Law for impairing foreign trade order.

The first version comes from the CLPH， the other from MC. The first version of the sentence uses a passive voice； the second sentence is more common. Personally speaking， the focus of this law refers to people who violate the law. The first sentence is more in line with the meanings of the texts from the theoretical analysis and the expression of sentence try to produce on its readers the effect as close as possible to the effect of the original text. The second sentence of the statement is rather common， and did not highlight the seriousness of the law. So the first translation is better than the second one.

References：

[1]Oxford Advanced learners English-Chinese Dictionary[M].Beijing：The Commercial Press，2005.

[2]Sarcevic，Susan.New Approach to Legal Translation[M].The Hague：Kluwer Law International，1997.

[3]肖云樞.法律英語句子結構特點及其翻譯[J].寧夏大學學報. 2007（3）：179-182.

[4]中華人民共和國對外貿易法（中英法德韓日對照本）[M].北京：中國法制出版社，2004.

[5]商務部官方網站.中華人民共和國對外貿易法英文版.[EB/OL].http：// english.Mofcom.gov.cn/aarticle/policyrelease/internationalpolicy/200705/20070504715845.html.

【基金項目】梧州學院2016校級科研一般項目，項目號：2016C001。