2007年VOA标准英语-Russia Moves to Limit Migrant Workers

By Lisa McAdams
Moscow
07 March 2007

By April, the Russian government hopes to reduce the number of illegal workers in the country by nearly 50 percent.  The majority of such workers toil¹ at low-wage market jobs shunned² by ordinary Russians.  Others are involved in the sale of counterfeit³ alcohol and medicine.  VOA's Lisa McAdams in Moscow takes a look at the government's new plans to stem the tide of illegal immigrants.

Azerbaijani Eldar Khuseinov shows pineapples on sale at a market in Moscow

Migrants from Central Asia and the Caucasus dominate markets across Russia.  But flows of illegal workers have also been reported from Vietnam, China, Turkey and India.  With Russian nationalism on the rise, resentment⁴ has grown against the migrants and their business gains.  Feuds⁵ between rival immigrant criminal gangs have also become more common. 

Just last month, in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, members of the National Bolsheviks Party staged an unauthorized protest inside Federal Migration⁶ Service headquarters, demanding tighter migration control regulations regarding Chinese nationals.

Russian migration officials say less than 10 percent of up to 12 million foreigners working in Russia are doing so legally.  As of this year, the government is taking steps to crack down on migrant labor⁷, in a bid to combat illegal immigration and return Russia's small shops and street markets to Russians. 

Russian officials claim that the millions of immigrants working illegally in the country do not pay taxes and siphon money out of the national economy.  But the World Bank's lead economist⁸ for Russia in Moscow, John Litwack, says that concern is groundless.

"If anything is a problem for Russia, it is that too much money is coming into the country, which is creating lots of pressure on the exchange rate on the ruble," he noted⁹.  "The fact that migrants are channeling some of this money home is, from a macro-economic point of view, is not detrimental¹⁰ to Russia at the current time.  In fact, I think it is useful from very many points of view, not the least of which is that it helps to promote stability in a number of neighboring countries."

Conservative estimates put the total amount of money sent to neighboring countries like Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova and Central Asia at around $4 billion to $5 billion per year.  Litwack said that money goes a long way toward fostering stability in those countries, where employment opportunities are slim and the lure¹¹ of drugs and crime hard to avoid.

Russian officials have drawn¹² up ethnic¹³ quotas¹⁴, declaring that the population of any one region of the country should be made up of no more than 17 percent to 20 percent of foreign nationals.  The officials say anything beyond that risks agitating¹⁵ the native population. 

The director of Russia's Federal Migration Service, Konstantin Romodanovsky, says the government has been completely transparent¹⁶ about the changes, including notifying all sellers what they need to do to comply.

Mr. Romodanovsky says the changes should actually liberalize the system, opening it up to greater competition.  Not everyone agrees.

Andrei Vazhenyen is a senior migration control officer in the Russian Far East, bordering China.  He says even though the new policy allows for a 40 percent make-up of foreign vendors¹⁷, most of the Chinese sellers have already fled back to China, leaving the market empty.

Andrei wonders where are all the Russian workers to take their places.   

Local shoppers are also skeptical¹⁸ of the plan.  Pensioner¹⁹ Lyudmila Ryabinkina says she prefers foreign sellers to Russians, because she says they offer lower prices.

Economist Litwack says the pensioner has a point.  As he sees it, the days of bargain prices could well be over. 

"We are worried that the effect is going to be negative," he said.  "That, in fact, it will be reflected in the prices in that when these markets are back and re-established and in full swing again, the prices are probably going to be higher, because costs are going to be higher.  You know attracting Russians to work there [at the markets] costs more money than to have migrants work there."

But the Russian government says the flood of immigrant workers needs to be stemmed.  Beyond targeting workers, the government is also exacting²⁰ a price on employers who hire illegal immigrants, threatening them with fines of up to $30,000 per worker.

A recent survey carried out by the independent Public Opinion Fund in Moscow found a growing tendency among Russians toward ethnic intolerance.  According to the survey, nearly 70 percent of Russians believe it is necessary to restrict the access of certain ethnic groups to parts of Russia.  Just under one-quarter of the population reportedly opposes such a move.

1 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

2 shunned   

v.避开，回避，避免( shun的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was shunned by her family when she remarried. 她再婚后家里人都躲着她。
• He was a shy man who shunned all publicity. 他是个怕羞的人，总是避开一切引人注目的活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 counterfeit   

vt.伪造，仿造；adj.伪造的，假冒的

参考例句：

• It is a crime to counterfeit money.伪造货币是犯罪行为。
• The painting looked old but was a recent counterfeit.这幅画看上去年代久远，实际是最近的一幅赝品。

4 resentment   

n.怨愤，忿恨

参考例句：

• All her feelings of resentment just came pouring out.她一股脑儿倾吐出所有的怨恨。
• She cherished a deep resentment under the rose towards her employer.她暗中对她的雇主怀恨在心。

5 feuds   

n.长期不和，世仇( feud的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Quarrels and feuds between tribes became incessant. 部落间的争吵、反目成仇的事件接连不断。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史
• There were feuds in the palace, no one can deny. 宫里也有斗争，这是无可否认的。 来自辞典例句

6 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。

7 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。

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 detrimental   

adj.损害的，造成伤害的

参考例句：

• We know that heat treatment is detrimental to milk.我们知道加热对牛奶是不利的。
• He wouldn't accept that smoking was detrimental to health.他不相信吸烟有害健康。

11 lure   

n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
• He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。

12 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

13 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

14 quotas   

（正式限定的）定量( quota的名词复数 )； 定额； 指标； 摊派

参考例句：

• In fulfilling the production quotas, John made rings round all his fellow workers. 约翰完成生产定额大大超过他的同事们。
• Quotas of the means of production are allocated by the higher administrative bodies to the lower ones. 物资指标按隶属关系分配。

15 agitating   

搅动( agitate的现在分词 )； 激怒； 使焦虑不安； （尤指为法律、社会状况的改变而）激烈争论

参考例句：

• political groups agitating for social change 鼓吹社会变革的政治团体
• They are agitating to assert autonomy. 他们正在鼓吹实行自治。

16 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

17 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

18 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

19 pensioner   

n.领养老金的人

参考例句：

• The tax threshold for a single pensioner is$ 445.单身领退休年金者的纳税起点为445英镑。
• It was the pensioner's vote late in the day that influenced the election of Mr.Sweet.最后是领取养老金者的选票影响了斯威特先生的当选。

20 exacting   

adj.苛求的，要求严格的

参考例句：

• He must remember the letters and symbols with exacting precision.他必须以严格的精度记住每个字母和符号。
• The public has been more exacting in its demands as time has passed.随着时间的推移，公众的要求更趋严格。