VOA标准英语2010年-Concerns Rise That Indian Students Wil

Indian students hold protest signs during a rally to stamp out violence against international students and racism¹ in Sydney, Australia, 07 Jun 2009

 

Tourism executives predict the number of Indian students coming to Australia will fall sharply in 2010 after a series of racially motivated attacks.  The assaults created a rift² between Canberra and New Dehli.

Tourism officials estimate a decline in students from India will cost Australia $70 million in lost revenue.
 
There are concerns that young Indians have been scared off by a series of assaults in Sydney and Melbourne over the past year.

Australian police say that while some of the assaults were racially motivated, the majority were opportunistic crimes by thugs preying³ on easy targets.
 
Security around trouble spots, such as suburban⁴ railway stations, has increased.  Senior government officials, including Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, have visited India to try to reassure⁵ potential students that appropriate safety measures have been taken. 
 
But Tourism Australia, the government agency that promotes the country overseas, thinks deep- seated fears remain in India about the violence.
 
Tourism Australia spokesman Bernard Salt says the outlook for 2010 does not look good.
 
"The number of Indians arriving in Australia for education purposes will decrease by more than 20 percent in 2010," he said.  "This is a segment that has grown strongly throughout this decade but the downturn is expected in response to concerns that the Indian community has had about safety."
 
The news media in India accused Australia of being a racist⁶ country, and the attacks have tarnished⁷ Australia's image as a friendly and relaxed place.
 
In recent years about 90,000 young Indians have arrived to study in Australia. Now the multi-billion dollar education industry worries about the effect of large decline in foreign students.
 
Despite concerns about Indian students, tourism authorities expect more international vacationers to visit Australia in the coming year as the travel trade recovers from the global financial crisis.
 
Most of the foreigners heading here on vacation in 2010 are expected to come from the United States and China.

1 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。

2 rift   

n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入

参考例句：

• He was anxious to mend the rift between the two men.他急于弥合这两个人之间的裂痕。
• The sun appeared through a rift in the clouds.太阳从云层间隙中冒出来。

3 preying   

v.掠食( prey的现在分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生

参考例句：

• This problem has been preying on my mind all day. 这个问题让我伤了整整一天脑筋。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• For a while he let his eyes idly follow the preying bird. 他自己的眼睛随着寻食的鸟毫无目的地看了一会儿。 来自辞典例句

4 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

5 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

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 tarnished   

（通常指金属）（使）失去光泽，（使）变灰暗( tarnish的过去式和过去分词 )； 玷污，败坏

参考例句：

• The mirrors had tarnished with age. 这些镜子因年深日久而照影不清楚。
• His bad behaviour has tarnished the good name of the school. 他行为不轨，败坏了学校的声誉。