2007年VOA标准英语-Fiji Provides Manpower for Dangerous Jobs in Ir

By Nicola Fell
Suva, Fiji
14 February 2007

The Pacific islands of Fiji may seem a world away from the battlefields of the Middle East, but Fiji has become a rich hunting ground for manpower in Iraq.  Fijians have a strong military tradition based on their "Bati" warrior¹ culture, and the British army in Iraq alone includes 2,000 of them.  Hundreds more are working in Baghdad for the United Nations, and for private security companies, which can be very lucrative² - even if you die.  Nicola Fell reports from the Fijian capital, Suva.

In a palm-fringed garden in Fiji's Burerua village, Manasa Lalaqila stands by two graves: his wife's, and that of his 34-year-old son, Timocei.  Timocei died in Iraq in 2005.  Lalaqila recalls the day he heard the news.

"An officer came one morning.  I was staying alone here and they tried to tell me what had happened, which I find very hard to accept," he said. " I was told he got shot in the plane while on duty, flying in a helicopter escorting some officers and then they were shot by insurgents³.  They managed to collect his body and send it back to Fiji.  So he's buried here beside his mother."

Battalion4 of The Black Watch, left, shares a laugh with Iraqi children in Zubayr, southern Iraq" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070521/1025520.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Private Matereti Vere, 25, originally from Fiji and serving with 1st Battalion of The Black Watch, left, shares a laugh with Iraqi children in Zubayr, southern Iraq

With their warrior culture, Fijians are a popular choice as United Nations peacekeepers.  As British Commonwealth⁵ citizens, 300 Fijian are recruited a year by the British Army.  And many more Fijians - like Timocei Lalaqila - work with private security companies.  Timocei was one of more than 20 Fijians who have died in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

The Bati warrior chant is traditionally sung by Fijians to prepare men for battle. 

As the men of Burerua village prepare a bowl of kava, the local narcotic⁶ drink, village spokesman Leone Matai explains the Bati culture.

"Bati refers to the teeth.  It bites.  Mostly in every tribe, there's special Batis.  I'm one of them," he explains.  "People are born with their positions.  In Fijian beliefs, we believe if you are a priest, you are born a priest.  If you are Bati, well the genes⁷ will come through you and so automatically you will be a Bati.  It doesn't matter what you do. So, if you are on the street, automatically you will become a street fighter. It's in the genes.  So if you're in warfare⁸, you are the best war man ever."

Following a recent military coup⁹ in Fiji, the British and the U.N. have stopped recruiting here.  The best option to earn good money abroad now is with the security companies.

Colonel Jonetani Kaukimoce is a Fijian agent for the British security company Control Risk.  In a Suva garment factory, he shows the uniforms his men work in - and sometimes die in. 

"This is the company badge with the tiger sitting and watching - that says security," he explained.

A list of 150 men ready and willing to go to Iraq is pinned on his office wall, and he has already sent another 150 - two of whom died.

He says the company normally pays more than $170,000  to the family of any man killed or permanently¹⁰ disabled while on security guard duty, but the family of those two men received nothing.

"Some of them from this company jumped to another company.  When they went there, they went as escorts.  Escorts, you are liable to get shot.  And when they jumped (to the other company) they were ambushed¹¹ and got killed," he explained.  "I received the bodies here because I was the last company, you know, to help them out.  I talked to their wives and said: 'This is the body of your husband - nothing else.  We don't have any compensation, no nothing.'"

As this situation shows, getting paid in Iraq is not a sure thing. 

Jo, a middle-aged¹² sugar farmer who did not want his full name used, says he was earning $100 a month in Fiji when he decided¹³ to sign up with an American security company in Iraq. 

"We thought we would be paid about 6,000 - because we were doing a very hard job," he said.  "It was looking after the state witnesses in Saddam's court trial.  I was in charge of the witnesses: to bring them over and to take them back to the Red Zone, to their villages in Djalil, Samarra and elsewhere." 

In the end, Jo says, he was paid a lot less than promised.

"They just paid us 1,200 bucks¹⁴ for a month, but it wasn't going into our accounts, but in cash."

Q. "Did you ever confront this American company about your pay?"

A. "We tell the boss … and he was just telling us, 'Yes, I'm going to inform the big boss.'  He was just saying that and end up nowhere."
  
Q. "How much would they pay if you died?"

A. "The thing is, you were shown here in Fiji a different contract.  And we went over, we went and signed a different contract."

Hundreds of Fijians have worked in Iraq for security companies.  Most of the fatalities¹⁵ have occurred in security work, and many say their contracts were not honored - yet Jo is preparing to go into a war zone again. 

"My next move is I want to leave for Afghanistan," Jo said.  "I've got a contract there.  I'll be paid 90 pounds a month."

Still standing¹⁶ by Timocei's grave, Lalaqila says his other son is now leaving for Iraq.

"He's leaving tomorrow," said Lalaqila.

Q. "Don't you want to tell him not to go?"

A. "They know that the risk is there, but they keep going and coming."

He does not want to confuse his son, Lalaqila says. He will leave his son to make the decision on his own.

1 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

2 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

3 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

4 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

5 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

6 narcotic   

n.麻醉药，镇静剂；adj.麻醉的，催眠的

参考例句：

• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。
• No medical worker is allowed to prescribe any narcotic drug for herself.医务人员不得为自己开处方使用麻醉药品。

7 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

8 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

9 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

10 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

11 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 middle-aged   

adj.中年的

参考例句：

• I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
• The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。