VOA标准英语2015--局势紧张和价格上涨影响约旦难民援助

In Jordan, Tensions, Prices Rise as Refugee Aid Drops Off 局势紧张和价格上涨影响约旦难民援助

AMMAN—

As the war in Syria enters its fifth year, half the population has been displaced and 4 million people have left the country. With no end to the conflict in sight, however, it is not just Syria that is reeling. Resources in neighboring countries are stretched to the limit and in the Jordanian capital, workers say prices and tensions are rising quickly as international aid becomes harder to attain¹.

There are no bombs going off these days in Jordan, but families say since the Syria war began, everything has changed.

Saleh Awad is a taxi driver and the father of nine children. As he eats lunch with his family off a large cloth on the floor, he says rent has gone up by 75 percent in recent years.

And as refugees pour out of Iraq as well as Syria, he says, competition from laborers² who will work for almost nothing makes its almost impossible to make enough money to pay the bills.

Ten percent of the people in Jordan are now refugees from Syria; but, international aid is dwindling³ along with the patience of host countries, says Andrew Walker, who heads the United Nations refugee agency in Jordan.

"Over time the welcome mat gets thinner and thinner. I think the security situation in the region magnifies the concerns of Jordanians of what impact the refugees have," he said.

The impact, he says, includes sharing the limited resources of Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, the countries where most Syrian refugees now live. The United Nations is seeking $3 billion for Jordan alone, but so far has raised only 5 percent of the money.

"On top of that you see the fighting that is going on inside Iraq and the displacement⁴ that is going on inside there," said Walker. "One of the challenges is: when does this stop? How long do we have to try to provide a humanitarian⁵ response to the political failures?"

These political failures, he adds, could also spread the security crisis into neighboring countries.

Outside Saleh’s house, his 15-year-old son Zaid entertains his younger siblings⁶. He says no one expects the nearby wars to end soon and he plans to join the military after he finishes school.

He says he plans to defend the homeland, but his father says fears the war could expand are not nearly as troubling as fears the economy will further deteriorate⁷, driving Jordanians from their homes and adding to the millions of displaced in the region.

Saleh adds, after four years of war, he is increasingly anxious because every day it becomes more difficult to feed his children. 

1 attain   

vt.达到，获得，完成

参考例句：

• I used the scientific method to attain this end. 我用科学的方法来达到这一目的。
• His painstaking to attain his goal in life is praiseworthy. 他为实现人生目标所下的苦功是值得称赞的。

2 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

3 dwindling   

adj.逐渐减少的v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The number of wild animals on the earth is dwindling. 地球上野生动物的数量正日渐减少。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority. 他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。 来自辞典例句

4 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

5 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

6 siblings   

n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

7 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。