2006年VOA标准英语-Aftermath of Racist Killing Spree Lingers

By Nina-Maria Potts
Antwerp, Belgium
01 June 2006
 
watch report on Belgium

Belgium is still reeling from the aftershock of the racially motivated killings² of an African nanny and her two-year-old charge. The 18-year-old murderer said he set out to kill foreigners.

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This nanny from Mali, and the two-year-old she was caring for, were killed in the attacks
  

It might have ended there, but the accused teenager was raised in a family that supported one of Europe's most successful anti-immigration political parties, the Vlaams Belang, or "Flemish Interest."

The leaders of the Vlaams Belang have denied any responsibility for the killing¹, but in the wake of the tragedy, politicians and members of civil society are asking whether the increasingly heated debate about multiculturalism³ and identity has given license⁴ to racial hatred⁵. 

On May 11, Flemish teenager Hans Van Themsche walked into a gun shop in central Antwerp and bought an American hunting rifle for 500 euros.

All he needed was his ID card. In Belgium guns may be taken home immediately after purchase -- the details are sent to the police for checking later.

The exchange took all of five minutes.

He then started stalking the streets in search of anyone who looked foreign. Themsche found a woman of Turkish origin reading on a park bench and shot her in the chest. She survived the attack but is still in intensive care.

Minutes later, Hans Van Themsche shot and killed a 24-year-old pregnant nanny from Mali and the two-year-old girl she was looking after. 

 
Senator Fauzaya Talhaoui
  
The killings shocked Belgians, sparking concern that this is part of a rising trend of racist⁶ violence. Thousands recently turned out in Antwerp to march silently against racism⁷. Fauzaya Talhaoui, a Flemish Senator of Moroccan origin, says it was the only way to unite a shattered community.

"It is so important that we stay in dialogue with each other, that we support each other,” she said. “A lot of people in Antwerp, in Flanders, in Belgium, really feel excluded because of their skin color."

Hans Van Themsche's motives⁸ could be rooted in his upbringing. His family loyally supports the anti-immigration Vlaams Belang party. The victims' families blame Vlaams Belang— Belgium's second largest party— for the killings.  

Philippe Van Der Sander  
  
Party spokesman Philippe Van Der Sander denies the charge. “We say what the people think in cities where there is a lot of immigration and criminality. These problems must be solved,” he said. “It is not to say that because we are the messengers, we are to blame.”

There have been other racist attacks in other cities, but this killing has profoundly shocked and shamed the country, plunging⁹ native Belgians into a period of intense soul-searching, and prompting immigrants to look over their shoulders.
 

Many Belgians marched to express their support for immigrants and condemn¹⁰ the killings  
  
Fauzaya Talhaoui said Muslim women in particular feel threatened. "What if I am going along the street? And someone puts a gun to my head just because I am wearing a veil? I don't feel secure, I feel very, very unsure," she said.

These are unsure times for immigrants- and native-born western Europeans. Riots in France, less tolerance¹¹ of immigrants in Holland – and now murder in Belgium.

Perhaps the fact that so many people turned up to march on a rainy day in Antwerp, shows that for the majority of Europeans, that kind of event is shockingly rare, and they want it to stay that way.

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

3 multiculturalism   

n.多元文化

参考例句：

• Switzerland is well known for cheese fondue, penguin parades and its multiculturalism. 瑞士一向以芝士火锅，企鹅游行和多元文化等特色闻名于世。
• That may be one reason why multiculturalism came easily to it. 这也是多元文化容易适应发展的原因之一。

4 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

5 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

6 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

7 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

8 motives   

n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• to impeach sb's motives 怀疑某人的动机
• His motives are unclear. 他的用意不明。

9 plunging   

adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• War broke out again, plunging the people into misery and suffering. 战祸复发，生灵涂炭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He is plunging into an abyss of despair. 他陷入了绝望的深渊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

11 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。