VOA标准英语2016--1.2万名库尔德地区教师遭土耳其解职

Mass Suspensions of Teachers Stoke Concern in Turkey’s Kurdish Region 1.2万名库尔德地区教师遭土耳其解职

DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY — 

Educators in Turkey are at the center of a crackdown, with more than 12,000 teachers suspended for alleged¹ links to the Kurdish rebel group, the PKK. A third of them work in Diyarbakir, a predominantly Kurdish area.

At the local office of the educators' union, Egitim-Sen, a lawyer, gave advice to teachers recently suspended or charged on suspicion of supporting terrorism. Over a quarter of Diyarbakir’s 17,000 teachers have been affected² by the crackdown. One teacher explained the intimidating³ tactics employed.

"At a very early hour in the morning police came banging on my door," he said. "They violently entered and told me that there is an order for my 'detention⁴.' You go through a big worry and fear at that time, but you also know that you have not done anything wrong. Yet you know you still can get such a harsh treatment."

The teachers are accused of supporting terrorism because they participated in a strike last year calling for peace and an end to fighting between the Turkish state and the PKK. But co-head of the Diyarbakir branch of the educators' union, Saliha Zorlu, said she believes there is a wider agenda behind the crackdown.

"We are very worried," she said. "Egitim-Sen is the guarantee of secularism⁵ both in the field of education and in society in general. If there is no active opposition⁶ by Egitim-Sen, I believe the education system will be pushed away from secularism and transformed into a religious system under the hegemony of religion."

"We are already seeing the signs of this today," Zorlu added. "During the attack on us, we saw that imams were appointed to state-run dormitories."

Kurds in Turkey traditionally are religious conservatives. Religious groups in the region backing the government have recently stepped up their activities, advocating for the region's return to its Islamic roots as a counter to the pro-secular, Marxist-rooted, PKK, the Kurdistan workers' Party. Like the rest of the country, there has been an expansion of religious schooling⁷ in the Kurdish region. But the government insists its suspension of teachers is only about fighting terrorism.

The head of the ruling AKP party in Diyarbakir, Muhammed Akar, promised the innocent will be protected.

"In the upcoming days, those who made propaganda for the terror organization, who boycotted⁸ schools and who encouraged students to join the terrorists, will be separated from the innocent teachers," said Akar. "I can say that a significant percentage will be reinstated to their duties, and the others, those who are guilty, will be charged."

The arrests and suspensions of teachers are continuing to provoke anger and protests; many parents complain that their children are without teachers. Idris Baluken, a parliamentary group leader of the pro-Kurdish HDP Party, warned the suspensions are adding more tension to the region.

"The position of the Kurdish teachers is like cartilage between two bones," he said. "Yes, when you go to school you can't have education in Kurdish, but still, Kurdish-speaking teachers can help with the problems faced by children who do not speak Turkish."

"By taking out this cartilage," Baluken said, "President Erdogan is causing friction⁹, making two bones rub against each other."

The conflict-strewn region appears to have a new front line - education, with children and teachers destined¹⁰ to become caught in the crossfire¹¹.

1 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 intimidating   

vt.恐吓，威胁( intimidate的现在分词)

参考例句：

• They were accused of intimidating people into voting for them. 他们被控胁迫选民投他们的票。
• This kind of questioning can be very intimidating to children. 这种问话的方式可能让孩子们非常害怕。

4 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

5 secularism   

n.现世主义；世俗主义；宗教与教育分离论；政教分离论

参考例句：

• Unless are devoted to God, secularism shall not leave us. 除非我们奉献于神，否则凡俗之心便不会离开我们。 来自互联网
• They are no longer a huge threat to secularism. 他们已不再是民主的巨大威胁。 来自互联网

6 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

7 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

8 boycotted   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Athletes from several countries boycotted the Olympic Games. 有好几国的运动员抵制奥林匹克运动会。
• The opposition party earlier boycotted the Diet agenda, demanding Miyaji's resignation. 反对党曾杯葛国会议程，要宫路下台。

9 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

10 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

11 crossfire   

n.被卷进争端

参考例句：

• They say they are caught in the crossfire between the education establishment and the government.他们称自己被卷进了教育机构与政府之间的争端。
• When two industrial giants clash,small companies can get caught in the crossfire.两大工业企业争斗之下，小公司遭受池鱼之殃。