VOA标准英语2009年-France Closes Illegal Immigrant Camp on Ch

By Lisa Bryant
Paris
17 September 2009

The French government announced it would close a zone occupied by immigrant squatters near the English Channel as part of its larger crackdown on illegal immigration.  The move has been sharply criticized for failing to resolve long-standing problems of immigration and asylum³.

The zone is known as 'the jungle' - an area the government says is rife⁴ with crime, located near the French port of Calais.  Several hundred illegal immigrants squat¹ in "the jungle."  Many are from Iraq and Afghanistan and are hoping to cross the channel by train or ferry for what they hope is a better life in Britain.

After warning for months the squatter² camp would be dismantled⁵, immigration minister Eric Besson said this week that the area would be closed within days.

In remarks on French radio, Besson described the official French policy as a mix of firmness and humanity.  He said French authorities have closed down a number of illegal immigrant camps this year, and dismantled about 30 human smuggling⁶ rings.  But he also said the center-right government would offer what he called an 'individual solution' for each immigrant.  Those who refused to leave France voluntarily or apply for asylum would be forcibly expelled.

But immigrant-rights advocates like Vincent Lenoir argue the government is merely displacing its illegal immigration problem - not solving it.  Lenoir works for an association called Salam, which helps the Calais immigrants.

Lenoir told French radio immigrants are not just located near Calais, but scattered⁷ along the French coast, seeking ways to reach Britain.  He said they are living in deplorable conditions.  Dismantling⁸ the Calais camp will simply make their lives more difficult.

This is not the first time the French government has cracked down on illegal immigrants near Calais.  In 2002, authorities shut down a similar camp known as Sangatte.  Many of the illegal immigrants living there simply moved down the coast. 

1 squat   

v.蹲坐，蹲下；n.蹲下；adj.矮胖的，粗矮的

参考例句：

• For this exercise you need to get into a squat.在这次练习中你需要蹲下来。
• He is a squat man.他是一个矮胖的男人。

2 squatter   

n.擅自占地者

参考例句：

• The squatter settlements originally came into being through illegal land invasions. 违章建筑区最初是通过非法的土地占有而形成的。
• Squatter control is maintained by regular patrols and hut-to-hut checks. 当局定期逐户视察所有寮屋，以收管制之效。

3 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

4 rife   

adj.(指坏事情)充斥的，流行的，普遍的

参考例句：

• Disease is rife in the area.疾病在这一区很流行。
• Corruption was rife before the election.选举之前腐败盛行。

5 dismantled   

拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消

参考例句：

• The plant was dismantled of all its equipment and furniture. 这家工厂的设备和家具全被拆除了。
• The Japanese empire was quickly dismantled. 日本帝国很快被打垮了。

6 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

7 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

8 dismantling   

（枪支）分解

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。
• The dismantling of a nuclear reprocessing plant caused a leak of radioactivity yesterday. 昨天拆除核后处理工厂引起了放射物泄漏。