2007年VOA标准英语-US Lawmakers Examine Plight of Iraqi Refugees

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
17 January 2007
 
watch Deborah Block's report

Millions of Iraqis have been displaced by the sectarian violence wracking their country, and many have sought refuge in neighboring countries - severely¹ straining those governments' resources. Some U.S. lawmakers believe the United States should do more to help Iraqi refugees, especially those who provided direct support to U.S. troops in Iraq. Two Iraqis who worked for the U.S. military in Iraq told Congress Tuesday that they were forced to flee their country after they received death threats. VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

 
An Iraqi woman at a refugee camp in Diwaniyah, 130 kilometers south of Baghdad
The two Iraqis did not use their real names, and they delivered their compelling testimony² from behind screens to protect their identities.

The first to testify before the Senate Judiciary subcommittee was a 27-year-old man who called himself Sami. He had a job as a translator for U.S. troops in Iraq. But he said his work in support of the U.S. military made him a target of death squads³:

"My name was listed on the doors of several mosques⁴ calling for my death," said Sami. "Supposed friends of mine saw my name of the list and turned on me because they believed I was a traitor⁵."

But even after he left his job working for U.S. troops, he believes he was still targeted. He described this harrowing incident in 2005:

"On November 7, I was seriously injured as a target in a car bombing," he said. "I was in a car traveling through a Mosul neighborhood when a suicide bomber⁶ in a car directly behind me blew himself up. I was hit by shrapnel in the face, bloodied⁷ and dazed. I am fortunate to be alive. Following this brush with death, I fled Iraq."

Sami arrived in the United States later that month on a temporary visitor visa, and last June, was the first Iraqi to be granted asylum⁸ under a special visa authorized⁹ by Congress.

A second Iraqi who has been given asylum in the United States for his work driving trucks for U.S. troops in Iraq said he, too, almost lost his life because of the job he did. The 48-year-old man who calls himself John said six men forced him to drive out to a desert, where they beat him.

"They told me they would kill me," said John. "I pleaded for my life. Five of the terrorists were yelling, kill him! One, however, spoke¹⁰ up and said we will not kill you, but you must leave the country immediately. If I did not leave, they promised to kidnap and slaughter¹¹ my entire family. They continued to beat me until I was knocked unconscious. I awoke several hours later alone and in the desert. I returned home to tell my family we had to leave the country immediately."

The special visas given to John and Sami are two of the 50 such visas granted to Iraqi and Afghan nationals who have worked in support of U.S. troops.

Some Democrats¹² on the Judiciary Committee want to see that number increased.

Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont is chairman of the panel:

"I am particularly concerned that we have not made provisions or created the legal authority necessary in this country to secure those Iraqis who have aided American efforts there," said Patrick Leahy. "These are people who we have called upon to help us, and now we are not there to help them."

But Ellen Sauerbrey, the U.S. State Department's Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration¹³, says part of the reason that more Iraqi refugees are not settled in the United States is a tougher security review that they must pass as a result of legislation passed by Congress in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United State:

"One of the reasons you are seeing so few Iraqis come into the United States since 2003 is because of enhanced security review that has been required, that has made it very difficult for these Iraqi refugees who have been referred to us by the UNHCR to pass through the screening mechanism," said Ellen Sauerbrey. "That enhanced security review has also led to UNHCR not making referrals to the United States."

The United Nations High Commissioner¹⁴ for Refugees estimates that there are 1.7 million internally displaced Iraqis and two million more who have become refugees in other countries, mainly in Syria and Jordan.

The situation is straining the host nations' economies.

Michel Gabaudan, regional representative for the United States and Caribbean at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, says the situation is one of the most serious humanitarian¹⁵ crises the UNHCR faces today.

"We are increasingly concerned about reports of deportations and denial of access to the borders," said Michel Gabaudan. "This reflects the strain that large refugee populations have placed on host societies. Living conditions for refugees who remain in host countries are also deteriorating¹⁶. Families have either depleted¹⁷ resources that they brought with them, or lacked resources to begin with. In this context, some women may be vulnerable to forced prostitution and young people to child labor¹⁸. Some 30 percent of Iraqi children are not attending school, and access to health care is seriously limited."

Gaubadan says the UNHCR hopes to hold an international conference on Iraqi resettlement in the first half of this year.

1 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

2 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

3 squads   

n.（军队中的）班( squad的名词复数 )；（暗杀）小组；体育运动的运动（代表）队；（对付某类犯罪活动的）警察队伍

参考例句：

• Anti-riot squads were called out to deal with the situation. 防暴队奉命出动以对付这一局势。 来自辞典例句
• Three squads constitute a platoon. 三个班组成一个排。 来自辞典例句

4 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

5 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

6 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

7 bloodied   

v.血污的( bloody的过去式和过去分词 )；流血的；屠杀的；残忍的

参考例句：

• his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子
• His pants leg was torn and bloodied when he fell. 他跌交时裤腿破了，还染上了血。 来自辞典例句

8 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

9 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

10 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。

11 slaughter   

n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀

参考例句：

• I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
• Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。

12 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

14 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

15 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。

16 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

17 depleted   

adj. 枯竭的, 废弃的 动词deplete的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Food supplies were severely depleted. 食物供应已严重不足。
• Both teams were severely depleted by injuries. 两个队都因队员受伤而实力大减。

18 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。