匈牙利修建篱笆阻挡移民计划遭批评

AS IT IS 2015-06-26 Hungary Criticized¹ for Border Fence Plan to Stop Refugees² 匈牙利修建篱笆阻挡移民计划遭批评

Hungarian officials have announced a plan to build a fence on the border with Serbia to try to stop people from illegally entering the country. Tens of thousands of refugees and migrants have already entered Hungary, most of them from the Middle East and Africa. They traveled through Turkey and the Balkans. Almost 60,000 migrants and refugees have entered Hungary this year.

Hungary’s conservative³ government says that is enough. It wants to end the flow of people. It says it will build a four-meter-high fence along the 175-kilometer-long border with Serbia.

Zoltan Kovacs is a Hungarian government spokesman⁴.

“These are people arriving from different civilizations trying to enter Europe illegally, causing lots of problems, lots of unsolved issues that has been with Western Europe for the past couple of decades. We definitively⁵ would like to avoid this happening in Hungary.”

Hungarians who live in the village of Asotthalom, near the border with Serbia, support the fence-building plan. Local official Zoltan Salinger says people in the village fear the migrants.

He says people are scared to let their children go outside their home alone. He says everyone is afraid of the migrants. But he admits they have not caused any problems.

Serbian Prime⁶ Minister Aleksandar Vucic reacted angrily to the announcement.

He said, “we will not build walls. I can guarantee that. Serbia will not close itself.”

Both Serbia and Hungary were once controlled by the Soviet⁷ Union. So Hungary’s plan to build a fence is difficult for some to accept. Julia Ivan is a lawyer for the non-governmental organization called the Helsinki Committee Hungary. The group campaigns for rights for migrants.

“Twenty six years after the Iron Curtain fell and the Berlin Wall fell, it is very sad to see that in Hungary, a new Iron Curtain, a new barbed wire fence, is being built.”

Anna Shea works⁸ at the rights group Amnesty International. She says European countries should support the refugees.

“I would characterize⁹ it as countries trying to avoid taking any responsibility. You know, refugees don’t want to be refugees -- they want to stay home. But when they’re in an unbearable¹⁰ situation they will leave, no matter what.”

The debate about migrant rights can be seen on signs on the streets of Hungary. The government’s signs say: “If you come to Hungary, you cannot take away Hungarians’ jobs.”

Some support the message on the signs, but not everyone does.

The United Nations has also created a campaign. It tells about refugees who have become successful, including an Afghan who guides travelers to interesting places and a Bangladeshi who owns a restaurant.

Words in This Story

migrant(s) – n. a person who goes from one place to another especially to find work

civilization – n. a particular well-organized and developed society

Iron Curtain – n. the political and military barrier in the past that separated the communist countries of Europe from the rest of Europe

characterize – v. to describe the character or special qualities of (someone or something)

unbearable – adj. too bad, harsh¹¹, or extreme to be accepted or endured¹²; not bearable

time bomb – n. a bomb that is set to explode at a particular moment

1 criticized   

vt.批评(criticize的过去式)v.评论，批评( criticize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The decision was criticized by environmental groups. 这个决定受到了环保团体的批评。
• The movie has been criticized for apparently legitimizing violence. 这部电影因明显地美化暴力而受到了指责。

2 refugees   

n.避难者，难民( refugee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The UN has begun making airdrops of food to refugees. 联合国已开始向难民空投食物。
• They claimed they were political refugees and not economic migrants. 他们宣称自己是政治难民，不是经济移民。

3 conservative   

adj.保守的，守旧的；n.保守的人，保守派

参考例句：

• He is a conservative member of the church.他是一个守旧教会教友。
• The young man is very conservative.这个年轻人很守旧。

4 spokesman   

n.发言人，代言人

参考例句：

• The government spokesman gave a quick briefing to the reporters.政府发言人向记者们作了情况简介。
• They drew lots to decide who should be their spokesman.他们抽签决定谁是他们的发言人。

5 definitively   

adv.决定性地，最后地

参考例句：

• None of the three super-states could be definitively conquered even by the other two in combination. 三个超级国家中的任何一国都不可能被任何两国的联盟所绝对打败。 来自英汉文学
• Therefore, nothing can ever be definitively proved with a photograph. 因此，没有什么可以明确了一张照片。 来自互联网

6 prime   

adj.首要的，主要的；最好的，第一流的

参考例句：

• The prime minister spoke of the general insecurity in the country.总理谈到了全国普遍存在的不安全。
• He met with the Prime Minister of Japan for an hour.他和日本首相会见了一个小时。

7 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

8 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

9 characterize   

v.以...为特征，描述...的特征，描绘

参考例句：

• We ordinarily characterize an action as responsible if it was intended.如果行为是有意的,我们一般将其特征归为应负责任的。
• We may characterize an atomic state by a quantum number L.我们可以用量子数L描写一个原子的状态。

10 unbearable   

adj.不能容忍的；忍受不住的

参考例句：

• It is unbearable to be always on thorns.老是处于焦虑不安的情况中是受不了的。
• The more he thought of it the more unbearable it became.他越想越觉得无法忍受。

11 harsh   

adj.严厉（酷）的，刺耳的，刺目的，毛糙的

参考例句：

• The sunlight is very harsh.太阳光很刺眼。
• Although his words are harsh,there is positiveness in them.虽然他的话很苛刻，但有建设性。

12 endured   

adj.吃苦耐劳的v.（长时间地）忍受，忍耐，容忍( endure的过去式和过去分词 )；持续，持久，坚持下去

参考例句：

• She endured her long illness with stoicism. 她默默忍受长期的病痛。
• He could not possibly have endured a whipping without a whimper. 他不可能一声不吭地忍受鞭打。 来自《简明英汉词典》