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VOA慢速英语2013 AS IT IS - A drop in the number of women touring India

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AS IT IS - A drop in the number of women touring India

From VOA LEARNING ENGLISH, welcome to AS IT IS!

Hello, I’m Steve Ember. 

Today on our program, the increasing number of Nigerian child brides and its effect on women’s education...efforts by the United Nations to end racial discrimination in sports…and a drop in the number of women touring India since the rape1 and murder of a young girl in the country. 

In parts of Nigeria, activists2 say it is increasingly common for girls to leave school to get married. Some girls are as young as 12 or 13. Nigerian girls of that age are also leaving school to work selling goods in marketplaces. The girls say they could become professionals if they could stay in school. Instead, most of them are just surviving. VOA’s Heather Murdock looked into the situation from Abuja. Kelly Jean Kelly has her report. 

Yalwa is a 13-year-old pregnant girl living in poverty in Abuja. Her husband is in his thirties. He sells goods from a wheelbarrow in the market place. Their home has no water system and electric power is undependable. 

(Yalwa in Hausa) But Yalwa is not talking about those problems. She says what she wants is to go to school. 

Before she was married she dreamed of being a doctor or a midwife. At her parent’s house, she and her brothers and sisters sometimes ate only once a day. She thought if she got married her husband would help her go to school. But that is not what happened. 

Activists in northern Nigeria say stories like Yalwa’s are increasingly common. 

Saratu Musa Makawa heads the National Association of Nigeria Female Students. She says when little girls get married, it is not just educational possibilities that they lose. 

“Apart from the psychological and sociological effects it also has a medical side effect.” 

The United Nations reports that more than 140 million girls worldwide are expected to become child brides by 2020. The UN says these girls are far more likely to die in childbirth or to give birth to a dead baby than are adult mothers. 

But Ms. Makawa says it is not just marriage that robs Nigerian girls of At the Kaduna Central Market in northern Nigeria men shout as they make deals and sell their goods. Among the sellers are many girls. Some of the girls are as young as six. 

Ms. Makawa says the girls are in constant danger of rape and other sexual threats, increasing the risk of unwanted pregnancies3, abortions4 and uncared for babies. 

Aisha Yusuf is with the aid organization Support Health and Education for Development. 

She says the solution begins with persuading parents to pay more attention to their daughters’ educations. But activists say daily earnings5 for all Nigerians must improve before many children will be able to live their dreams. 

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly. 

You are listening to AS IT IS. I’m Steve Ember. 

The United Nations is demanding an end to what it calls the crime of racism6 in sports. The U.N. is joining football officials and players in an effort to end racial discrimination in the game. The move follows the defiant7 action of Kevin-Prince Boateng, who plays for AC Milan. He walked off the pitch during an exhibition football match to protest racial insults. 

The sports announcer was expressing disbelief at Kevin-Prince Boateng walking off the football pitch. Other players on the team joined him. They were protesting the racist8 insults he suffered during action against Italian lower division club Pro-Patria. 

The star player says he is not sorry for ending the game after 25 minutes of play. He kicked the ball off the field and left after hearing insults and offensive names coming from the crowd. 

“The report that the entire AC Milan team had presented a resolute9 and united front against racist abuse made headline news all over the world. This is the reason why I am here today.” 

Kevin-Prince Boateng is one of several football players and officials invited by the United Nations to take part in a discussion about ending racial discrimination. 

Boateng was born in Berlin of a father from Ghana and a German mother. He plays for the Ghanaian national team. He says he does not regret walking out of a game because if left alone, he believes prejudice does not go away. He says it must be dealt with or it will spread. 

“I just think we have to stand up against it every time.” 

Patrick Vieira is a former captain of the French national football team. He says racism has no place on the pitch. He also says the walk-off was a huge step forward. 

“I think him walking outside of the field improved the situation.” 

Yet UN official Navi Pillay says the world continues to see deeply unpleasant actions during sporting events --including football matches. 

“They have included insults, offensive chants, Nazi10 salutes11, petitions against hiring certain players.” 

She calls racism a violation12 of human rights. And she says it is a crime, one that sports officials must treat as a crime. 

You are listening to AS IT IS. I’m Steve Ember. 

Indian officials say more than six million international tourists visited India last year. The country earned almost $18 billion dollars from those visitors. But a new report says the number of tourists is down 25 percent. As we hear from Karen Leggett, the number of foreign women visiting India has dropped by more than a third in the past three months. 

The report comes from the Associated Chambers13 of Commerce and Industry in India. The group questioned 1,200 tour operators from across the country. They blamed safety concerns and weakness in the world economy for the drop in the number of tourists. 

More than 70 percent of the tour operators reported trip cancellations in the past three months, especially by women coming from the United States, Canada and Australia. 

American Susan Gass is staying in India to visit tourist sites after a two-week study program. She says she does not think there is anything to fear. 

“I will be careful. My partner did give me a whistle before I came because he had some concerns. I have tried actually not to follow too much of the media because I’m going to be traveling on my own. I don’t want to be scared the whole time I am traveling.” 

Sexual attacks in India have received more attention since a group of men raped14 and killed a young Indian woman in New Delhi last December. In March, a Swiss traveler was raped while traveling by bicycle with her husband in Madyha Pradesh state. In a separate incident, a British woman jumped out of a hotel window in Agra after a man reportedly forced his way into her room. 

Indian officials say it is not fair to say the country is unsafe because of only a few incidents. 

Indian officials say they have increased security in New Delhi and other tourist sites. And, travel professionals are urging the government to launch a 24-hour emergency telephone service to advise foreign travelers. I’m Karen Leggett. 

And that’s our program for today. I’m Steve Ember. Thanks for joining us.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 rape PAQzh     
n.抢夺,掠夺,强奸;vt.掠夺,抢夺,强奸
参考例句:
  • The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
  • He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。
2 activists 90fd83cc3f53a40df93866d9c91bcca4     
n.(政治活动的)积极分子,活动家( activist的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
  • Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 pregnancies 2fedeb45162c233ee9e28d81888a2d2c     
怀孕,妊娠( pregnancy的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Since the wartime population needed replenishment, pregnancies were a good sign. 最后一桩倒不失为好现象,战时人口正该补充。
  • She's had three pregnancies in four years. 她在四年中怀孕叁次。
4 abortions 4b6623953f87087bb025549b49471574     
n.小产( abortion的名词复数 );小产胎儿;(计划)等中止或夭折;败育
参考例句:
  • The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人:不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
  • Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论:染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网
5 earnings rrWxJ     
n.工资收人;利润,利益,所得
参考例句:
  • That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
  • Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。
6 racism pSIxZ     
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。
7 defiant 6muzw     
adj.无礼的,挑战的
参考例句:
  • With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时,仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
  • He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。
8 racist GSRxZ     
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。
9 resolute 2sCyu     
adj.坚决的,果敢的
参考例句:
  • He was resolute in carrying out his plan.他坚决地实行他的计划。
  • The Egyptians offered resolute resistance to the aggressors.埃及人对侵略者作出坚决的反抗。
10 Nazi BjXyF     
n.纳粹分子,adj.纳粹党的,纳粹的
参考例句:
  • They declare the Nazi regime overthrown and sue for peace.他们宣布纳粹政权已被推翻,并出面求和。
  • Nazi closes those war criminals inside their concentration camp.纳粹把那些战犯关在他们的集中营里。
11 salutes 3b734a649021fe369aa469a3134454e3     
n.致敬,欢迎,敬礼( salute的名词复数 )v.欢迎,致敬( salute的第三人称单数 );赞扬,赞颂
参考例句:
  • Poulengey salutes, and stands at the door awaiting orders. 波仑日行礼,站在门口听侯命令。 来自辞典例句
  • A giant of the world salutes you. 一位世界的伟人向你敬礼呢。 来自辞典例句
12 violation lLBzJ     
n.违反(行为),违背(行为),侵犯
参考例句:
  • He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说,那是违反规则的。
  • He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。
13 chambers c053984cd45eab1984d2c4776373c4fe     
n.房间( chamber的名词复数 );(议会的)议院;卧室;会议厅
参考例句:
  • The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间:Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网
14 raped 7a6e3e7dd30eb1e3b61716af0e54d4a2     
v.以暴力夺取,强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 );强奸
参考例句:
  • A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
  • We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致,不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

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