2006年VOA标准英语-French Official's Visit to Africa Sparks P

By Lisa Bryant
Paris
18 May 2006

French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy is on a two-day visit to West Africa for talks on political and development issues - and on the very controversial matter: tough new French immigration restrictions¹.

-----------------------------------------------------

Nicolas Sarkozy  
  

Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters he wants to quell² anger over new French immigration legislation during his visits to Mali and Benin Thursday and Friday. But that may prove a tall order.

Several hundred people gathered to protest Sarkozy's arrival in Mali late Wednesday chanting "Sarkozy, racist³!" and legalize the sans papiers - or illegal immigrants. Malian newspapers and parliamentary deputies have also criticized the interior minister's visit.

The protests are directed against new immigration legislation backed by Sarkozy, and passed by France's National Assembly this week. The bill still awaits a vote in the French Senate.

The legislation would give special consideration to the most qualified⁴ and educated people trying to move to France. It also would drastically curb⁵ opportunities for families of immigrants to move to France - and for illegal immigrants to be legalized after living here for 10 years.
 
 
Protesters hold a meeting in front of French embassy in Bamako to protest against the visit of French Interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy. The banner reads 'Sarko-xenophobic-rasist, is not welcome in Mali' 
  
A large share of immigrants to France are of African origin. Mali accounts for the highest number of African immigrants here - and only about half of these Malians have legal papers.

The French legislation mirrors a larger European trend toward more selective immigration policies and tougher expulsion measures. European and African officials are to discuss immigration measures in July, during a conference in Rabat.

Daphne Bouteillet, a European immigration expert at Amnesty International, says Europe and Africa remain far apart on immigration strategies.

"European politicians stress the need for more border controls and barriers to stop immigration from Africa, Bouteillet says, while Africans want more emphasis on poverty and development - which they argue are the root causes of immigration," she said.

Those same tensions are expected to surface during Sarkozy's talks with top officials in Mali and Benin.

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 quell   

v.压制，平息，减轻

参考例句：

• Soldiers were sent in to quell the riots.士兵们被派去平息骚乱。
• The armed force had to be called out to quell violence.不得不出动军队来镇压暴力行动。

3 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。

4 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

5 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。