马拉拉:投资书籍,而不是子弹

Malala: Invest in Books, Not Bullets 马拉拉:投资书籍,而不是子弹

Pakistani Malala Yousafzai is the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. On Sunday July 12, she celebrated¹ her 18th birthday by opening a school in Lebanon. The school serves Syrian refugee girls in the Bekaa Valley.

Ms. Yousafzai has been an education activist² for years and at great risk. In 2012, Taliban gunmen shot the 15 year-old school girl in the head. They said they did it because she supported education rights for females.

Ms. Yousafzai survived the attack and continued to fight for education. In 2014, she won the Nobel Peace Prize.

On Sunday, the activist spoke³ in a schoolroom surrounded by drawings of butterflies. She said people need to pay more attention to refugees from Syria.

"I decided⁴ to be in Lebanon because I believe that the voices of the Syrian refugees need to be heard and they have been ignored for so long."

Opening of the Malala Yousafzai girls’ school

Ms. Yousafzai also said leaders must buy books instead of bullets.

"Today on my first day as an adult, on behalf of the world's children, I demand of leaders we must invest in books instead of bullets. Books, not bullets, will pave the path towards peace and prosperity."

The Malala Fund is a non-profit organization that supports local education projects. It paid for the school in the Bekaa Valley, close to the Syrian border. Up to 200 girls aged⁵ 14 to 18 can attend the school.

There are 1.2 million refugees from Syria's war in Lebanon. In all, four million people have fled to neighboring countries. There are about 500,000 Syrian children in Lebanon. Only about 100,000 of them are attending school.

The sharp increase in the number of refugees in Lebanon has caused economic difficulty. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees says over half of Syrian refugees in Lebanon are under 18. Most of the refugees need humanitarian⁶ aid. Twenty percent of the people now in Lebanon are refugees.

Too little money for food aid to Syrian refugees

The U.N. also says the number of Syrian refugees in neighboring countries is growing. And the World Food Program, or WFP, does not have the financial support that governments said they would provide. Last month, the agency reported it had not received seventy-five percent of the money promised by several governments.

On July first, the WFP announced it would cut the amount given to Syrian refugees in Lebanon for food to about half of one dollar per person per day. In Jordan, most refugees live below the poverty line of $3.20 per day.

Ms. Yousafzai said that Jordan and Lebanon are barring some Syrian refugees from entering their countries. She called the situation inhuman⁷ and shameful⁸.

The United Nations reports that pressure on host countries continues to grow. Some six million people are displaced in Syria and neighboring countries. It is becoming more difficult for Syrians to find a safe place in the area. So, more are planning even riskier⁹ trips. They attempt dangerous travel across the Mediterranean¹⁰ Sea to try to reach Europe. Many Syrians have died on these attempts.

A lifelong mission

Malala Yousafzai’s father, Ziauddin Yousafzai, said he was proud that his daughter was continuing her activism as an adult.

"The mission she was carrying with her life when she was hardly an 11 years old in Swat Valley, when Taliban banned girls’ education and they bombed many, many schools, she stood for her right. After [the] attack, that small event on a very small local level, it turned into a global campaign for education.”

At the Malala Yousafzai All-Girls School, students sang Happy Birthday and gave Ms. Yousafzai a birthday cake. The warm welcome led to tears of joy. Ms. Yousafzai said the girls did not need advice from her.

"They are amazing, I don't think they need any message, I don't think they need any other advice because they know that education is very important for them."

Words in This Story

activist - n. a person who uses or supports strong actions (such as public protests) to help make changes in politics or society

on behalf of someone - as a representative of someone

pave (the way for) - v. to make it easier for something to happen or for someone to do something

inhuman - adj. very fierce or cruel?

displaced - adj. people who have been forced to leave the area/country where they live

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 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。

5 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

6 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。

7 inhuman   

adj.残忍的，不人道的，无人性的

参考例句：

• We must unite the workers in fighting against inhuman conditions.我们必须使工人们团结起来反对那些难以忍受的工作条件。
• It was inhuman to refuse him permission to see his wife.不容许他去看自己的妻子是太不近人情了。

8 shameful   

adj.可耻的，不道德的

参考例句：

• It is very shameful of him to show off.他向人炫耀自己，真不害臊。
• We must expose this shameful activity to the newspapers.我们一定要向报社揭露这一无耻行径。

9 riskier   

冒险的，危险的( risky的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Now they are starting to demand higher returns on riskier assets. 而今他们开始在风险更高的资产上要求更高的回报。
• The problem with that: RIM's business is getting riskier every quarter. 不过问题也随之而来：RIM面临的业务风险正逐季增大。

10 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。