Hannah Summers’ article raises disturbing(令人不安的) concerns about the misuse of parental alienation(父母疏离) allegations in family courts (‘Just like that, I lost my girls’: the mother who feels betrayed by the family courts, 29 September). However, I believe that it would benefit from a clearer distinction between the discredited(已被否定的) theory of “parental alienation syndrome(父母疏离综合征)” (PAS) and genuine, demonstrable(可证明的) alienating behaviour.
汉娜·萨默斯的文章提出了令人不安的担忧：家事法庭中存在滥用“父母疏离”指控的现象（《“就这样，我失去了女儿们”：那位感到被家事法庭背叛的母亲》，9月29日）。不过，我认为文章若能更清晰地区分已被否定的“父母疏离综合征”（PAS）理论与真实、可证明的疏离行为，会更有价值。
PAS proposed that a child’s unjustified(无正当理由的) rejection of a parent could be identified as a distinct syndrome. It is no longer an accepted clinical diagnosis, since a child’s rejection of a parent cannot itself establish manipulation, therefore treating it as diagnostic risks overlooking abuse or other legitimate reasons for the child’s feelings.(它已不再是被接受的临床诊断，因为孩子对父母的排斥本身不能证明操控，因此将其视为诊断依据可能忽视虐待或孩子情感的其他正当原因。)
PAS 曾提出，孩子对父母一方毫无根据的排斥可被认定为一种独立的综合征。但它如今已不再是被接受的临床诊断，因为孩子对父母的排斥本身并不能证明存在操控，因此将其视为诊断依据，可能会忽视虐待或孩子情感的其他正当原因。
However, rejecting PAS as a clinical diagnosis should not obscure(掩盖) the reality that one parent can manipulate a child into rejecting(操控孩子去排斥) the other. Persistent denigration, emotional pressure and demands for loyalty can leave a child feeling that loving one parent means betraying the other.(持续的贬低、情感施压和忠诚要求，会让孩子觉得爱一方父母就意味着背叛另一方。) No child should have to carry that burden(背负那个重担).
然而，否定 PAS 作为临床诊断，不应掩盖一个现实：一方父母确实可能操控孩子去排斥另一方。持续的贬低、情感施压和忠诚要求，会让孩子觉得爱一方父母就意味着背叛另一方。任何孩子都不该背负这样的重担。