It is often said after an atrocity(暴行，残暴行为) that terrorists will not prevail. Those who practise politics by peaceful means, the mantra goes(口号是，反复说的套话), will triumph over those who choose violence. If only it were true.(可惜事实并非如此。) The bleaker(更暗淡的，更无希望的) reality is that, in Britain, the threat of violence against parliamentarians(议员，国会议员) is having the effects that at least some of its perpetrators desire: driving people from public life and shrinking the sphere of debate(缩小辩论空间).
人们常说，在暴行发生后，恐怖分子不会得逞。那句口号是，用和平手段施行政治的人终将战胜选择暴力的人。可惜事实并非如此。更残酷的现实是，在英国，针对议员的暴力威胁正在产生至少部分施暴者所期待的效果：将人们赶出公共生活，缩小辩论空间。
More than a quarter of candidates at the last general election in 2024 said they had considered not standing(参选（竞选职位）) because of concerns about harassment(骚扰，烦扰) and intimidation(恐吓，威胁), according to a survey of candidates by the parliamentary authorities. Some 58% said they had been physically attacked or touched against their will(遭受人身攻击或非自愿触摸); 77% had suffered intimidating acts such as damage to property(财产损坏) or being followed in the street. A quarter said it led them to hesitate(犹豫，迟疑) before making decisions; more than two in five(超过五分之二) said they avoid getting involved in some policy debates altogether(完全，彻底).
根据议会当局对候选人的一项调查，在2024年上次大选中，超过四分之一的候选人表示，由于担心骚扰和恐吓，他们曾考虑过不参选。约58%的人表示曾遭受人身攻击或违背意愿的触摸；77%的人曾遭受恐吓行为，如财产损坏或街头跟踪。四分之一的人表示这让他们在决策时犹豫不决；超过五分之二的人表示完全避免参与某些政策辩论。
Those figures will surely rise. On July 9th Ann Widdecombe, a 78-year-old former Tory(保守党的（成员）) MP who became a member of the populist-right(民粹右翼的) Reform UK, was found dead in her remote bungalow(平房，小屋) in Devon. Police later concluded that she had been murdered in a “targeted attack(针对性袭击)”. A 28-year-old white British man from Rotherham, 430km away, has been arrested on suspicion of(涉嫌（犯罪）) terrorism offences(罪行，违法行为). The motive(动机) is unclear.
这些数字肯定还会上升。7月9日，78岁的前保守党议员安·威德库姆被发现死于德文郡偏僻的平房中，她后来加入了民粹右翼政党“改革英国”。警方后来得出结论，她是在一次“针对性袭击”中被谋杀。一名来自430公里外的罗瑟勒姆的28岁白人英国男子因涉嫌恐怖主义罪被捕。动机尚不清楚。