2006年VOA标准英语-New Concern Over Human Smuggling in Africa

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
20 January 2006

The U.N. Refugee Agency, UNHCR, says the death this week of 20 Africans smuggled¹ on a boat heading for Yemen underscores the urgent need for international action to stem the flow of desperate people who fall prey² to ruthless traffickers.  The UNHCR says among those reported dead were four Ethiopians and 16 Somalis.

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The U.N. Refugee Agency says six dead bodies were found when a boat carrying 65 people reached Yemen earlier this week. 

UNHCR Spokesman, William Spindler, says another 14 people reportedly died during the voyage.  Among them, he says, were six people who threw themselves into the sea because they could not bear the thirst.  He says the bodies of eight other people who died on board of thirst and hunger were thrown overboard. 

"The boat left port near Bossaso in the Puntland region of Somalia with little food or water, allegedly to maximize space for its human cargo," he said.  "After its engine failed, the boat drifted in the Gulf³ of Aden for six days, with passengers growing hungrier and more desperate by the hour.  UNHCR staff in Yemen arranged medical assistance for survivors-some of whom had bite marks from crazed fellow passengers." 

Spindler notes this horrific voyage is not unusual.  He says smugglers frequently beat their passengers or force them overboard while still far away from shore.  He says crews from commercial liners have, in the past, rescued people found drifting helplessly in the shark-infested waters.

Besides the traffickers and the sharks, he says the thousands of desperate Africans who try to reach Yemen every year also are in danger of encountering pirates.

"The issue of piracy⁴ on the coast of Somalia is something that worries the shipping⁵ companies," he added.  "It is part of the general lawlessness that exists in Somalia.  This problem of people leaving Somalia and also Ethiopia to try to reach Yemen, some of them to look for better conditions, but many of them also escaping lawlessness and persecution⁶ at home is part of this general degradation⁷ of the security situation there." 

In September, the UNHCR called for international action to stem the flow of desperate people across the Gulf of Aden.  This followed a particularly bad three-week period in which 150 people died.  UNHCR Spokesman Spindler says the agency is forced to renew this appeal because no action has been taken. 

In the meantime, he says the UNHCR is working with authorities in Puntland, in north-eastern Somalia, on a campaign to inform people about the dangers of using smugglers to go to Yemen.  He says videos and radio programs will be used to raise awareness⁸ among Somalis and Ethiopians.

1 smuggled   

水货

参考例句：

• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Those smuggled goods have been detained by the port office. 那些走私货物被港务局扣押了。 来自互联网

2 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

3 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

4 piracy   

n.海盗行为，剽窃，著作权侵害

参考例句：

• The government has already adopted effective measures against piracy.政府已采取有效措施惩治盗版行为。
• They made the place a notorious centre of piracy.他们把这地方变成了臭名昭著的海盗中心。

5 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

6 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。

7 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

8 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。