VOA标准英语2009-Spain Helping Mauritania Slow Illegal Immigr

Spanish, Mauritanian governments step up patrols along the coast to stop illegal immigration; Madrid helps Nouakchott with an annual budget of $750 million and a small plane to keep watch on immigration routes.

Scott Stearns | Dakar 24 November 2009

A would-be immigrant is carried on shore after arriving with 65 others, including four minors² and a dead African, in the port of Los Cristianos on the Spanish Canary Island of Tenerife (File)

"The number of people trying to get to Europe illegally has fallen by nearly 80 percent as a result of renewed efforts to secure the coastline," said Ahmed Ould Khayer, who runs a non-governmental organization in Nouadhibou.

Spain is helping³ Mauritania fight the illegal immigration of Africans trying to reach Europe.  The number of those trying the dangerous ocean crossing are down, but many young Africans remain determined⁴ to make the trip.

The northern city of Nouadhibou is Mauritania's commercial capital. But its proximity⁵ to the Spanish-controlled Canary Islands also makes it a center for illegal immigration in West Africa.

Bamba Zoumana traveled overland from his home in Mali to join other West Africans trying to make the nearly 1,000 kilometers to the Canary Islands on a small wooden boat. They were turned back to Nouadhibou. But Zoumana says he will try again.

Zoumana says in his own country no one respects you because you have no money. So he made the final decision to leave for his family.  It is a choice between reaching Europe and dying in the ocean. If you die, your family loses. But if you reach Europe, Zoumana says, your family wins.

Some of the people who do not make it to Europe then decided⁶ to stay at home. But not Zoumana. He says he should be there. But if he does not succeed, he says he is obliged to do his best for his son to reach Europe.

The Spanish and Mauritanian governments have stepped up patrols along the coast to stop that illegal immigration. Madrid is helping Nouakchott with an annual budget of nearly $750 million and a small plane to keep watch on immigration routes.

Spain′s Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos (File)

Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Miguel Angel Moratinos was the first European foreign minister to visit Mauritanian President Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz after his election earlier this year. Moratinos announced plans to strengthen development assistance for fishing, agriculture, and health as well as strategic cooperation on fighting illegal migration¹, terrorism, and smuggling⁷.

Ahmed Ould Khayer runs a non-governmental organization in Nouadhibou that helps illegal immigrants who are waiting to be returned to their home countries.

Because most of the people trying to emigrate illegally from Nouadhibou are not Mauritanians, Khayer says they live in the country in secret, making their cases difficult to follow. Khayer says his group's research shows the number of people trying to get to Europe illegally has fallen by nearly 80 percent as a result of renewed efforts to secure the coastline.

Malian Diara Oumaro knows it is a dangerous trip. But he is in Nouadhibou getting ready to go.

Oumaro says illegal immigrants are paying boatmen between $700 and $1,000 for passage to the Canary Islands. Many of his friends and neighbors died at sea in 2006 and 2007. But he is determined to try.

Everyone loves Europe, Oumaro says. In Africa now, if you have a job you are saving money to try to get to Europe. If you don't have money, you take small jobs in construction, and as soon as you have enough money, you try to reach Europe because in Europe, Oumaro says, you can make a lot of money and come back home.

Yahya Cisse, who heads a group of young Malians in Nouadhibou, says illegal immigration is a problem for everyone - for the home countries of migrants, for Mauritania, and for Spain.

Cisse says people in Mali know nothing about the ocean. If they knew how dangerous it was, he says, maybe they would not take the risk. In Mauritania, he says Malians must be better informed about the dangers and better prevented from trying the ocean crossing. As for Spain, he says there are some Spanish nationals who are accomplices⁸ in illegal immigration who play down the risks of the trip to get money from people desperate for what they hope will be a better life in Europe.

1 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。

2 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

4 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

5 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

6 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。

7 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

8 accomplices   

从犯，帮凶，同谋( accomplice的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was given away by one of his accomplices. 他被一个同伙出卖了。
• The chief criminals shall be punished without fail, those who are accomplices under duress shall go unpunished and those who perform deeds of merIt'shall be rewarded. 首恶必办， 胁从不问，立功受奖。