VOA标准英语2016--难民涌入给默克尔带来压力

Merkel Under Pressure After Migrant Influx¹ 难民涌入给默克尔带来压力

BERLIN—

German Chancellor² Angela Merkel is facing mounting political pressure over the number of migrants arriving in her country — with regional authorities demanding that Berlin provide more resources to cope with the crisis.

More than 1.1 million migrants are being resettled across Germany. At a meeting Thursday with Chancellor Merkel, the leaders of Germany’s 16 federal states demanded a doubling of financial aid and support for housing and schools. Hannelore Kraft is president of the North Rhine-Westphalia region.

"I and other regional leaders cannot see any great progress against the mountain of asylum³ applications, which continues to grow," said Kraft. "German citizens are worried, partly because we don’t really know who is here."

On Thursday, Chancellor Merkel struck a deal with her governing coalition⁴ partners that would facilitate deportations and restrict the rights of migrants to bring their families to Germany.

"The government wants those with the prospect⁵ of remaining to be integrated, but those who have no prospect of remaining should return," said Merkel.

Germany anticipates the migrant influx could cost the state an extra $3.7 billion in extra social benefits during 2016. It’s hoped German language classes will speed the migrants' entry into the labor⁶ market and cut the benefits bill.

It’s uncertain there’ll be enough jobs, says the head of integration⁷ for the Berlin regional senate, Andreas Germershausen.

“There is some capacity that can be absorbed," said Germershausen. "There is also a need for specific fields of the labor market. However, on the lower end of the labor market, there is, of course, the danger of competition."

German lawmakers fear a second wave of migrants as family members attempt to join those already in Germany. Figures from the United Nations show a sharp increase in the number of women and children arriving on Europe’s shores in 2016.

1 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

2 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

3 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

4 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

5 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

6 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。

7 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。