2019年经济学人 印度追捕“非法移民”(2)

 

Indigenous¹ Assamese have long complained that they are being swamped in their own homeland by migrants from Bengal, the densely² populated region to the south (see Asia section). In colonial times, there was such an influx³, since there were no borders to stop poor Bengalis moving north in search of a better life. Assamese nationalists, pointing to Bengalis’ ever higher share of the state’s population, insist the flow of migrants continues to this day, even though the Muslim part of Bengal has become a separate country, Bangladesh.

长期以来，土著阿萨姆人一直抱怨说，来自南部人口稠密地区孟加拉的移民正把他们淹没在自己的家园中。在殖民时期，由于没有边界来阻止贫穷的孟加拉人向北寻求更好的生活，移民潮就这样涌入。阿萨姆邦的民族主义者指出，孟加拉人在这个邦的人口中所占的比例越来越高。他们坚持认为，尽管孟加拉的穆斯林地区已经成为一个独立的国家——孟加拉国，但移民潮仍在继续。

Muslims make up a third of Assam’s population. The state’s shifting demography⁴ is mainly the result of a higher birth rate among Bengalis already in Assam, not migration⁵. But that has not stopped the Bharatiya Janata Party (BIP), which dominates both the state and national governments, from vowing⁶ to collar lots of illegal immigrants. And since so few of them exist, more had to be invented.

穆斯林占阿萨姆邦人口的三分之一。邦人口结构的变化主要是由于已经在阿萨姆邦的孟加拉人出生率更高，而不是移民。但这并没有阻止控制邦和国家政府的印度人民党发誓要逮捕大量非法移民。而且由于移民本来就不多，所以要创造更多。

The law the government is eagerly enforcing requires all residents to prove that they or their forebears were in the state by March 24th 1971. That is a big hurdle⁷ for poor farmers and itinerant⁸ workers, especially women, many of them illiterate⁹. Suspects can be denounced as non-citizens by anonymous¹⁰ tips, an invitation to abuse. There have been lots of mistakes, such as a decorated war hero who was declared not to be Indian. Roughly 60% of those found not to be citizens at the 100 “foreigners’ tribunals” the state government is setting up were not even present for the proceedings¹¹. Some 3.7m of the 4mpeople declared illegal immigrants are challenging their designation. There has been a spate¹² of suicides tied to adverse¹³ rulings.

政府正在积极执行的法律要求所有居民在1971年3月24日前证明他们或他们的祖先合法生活在该州。对于贫穷的农民和流动工人来说，这是一个巨大的障碍，尤其是妇女，她们中的许多人是文盲。嫌疑人可能会被匿名举报为非公民，从而招致虐待。会造成很多错误，比如一个被授予勋章的战争英雄被宣布不是印度人。在州政府设立的100个“外国人法庭”中，约有60%的非公民甚至没有出席庭审。在被宣布为非法移民的400万人中，约有370万人正对他们的身份提出质疑。一系列的自杀事件都与不利判决有关。

1 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

2 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

3 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。

4 demography   

n.人口统计，人口学

参考例句：

• Demography is the analysis of population variables.人口学是对人口变量的分析。
• It was once a rule of demography that people have fewer children as their countries get richer.按人口统计学的一贯规律，一个国家里的人民越富有，他们所拥有的孩子就越少。

5 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。

6 vowing   

起誓，发誓（vow的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild its collapsed bridge. 布什总统承诺将帮助明尼阿波利斯重建坍塌的大桥。
• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild this collapse bridge. 布什总统发誓要帮助明尼阿波利斯重建起这座坍塌的桥梁。

7 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

8 itinerant   

adj.巡回的；流动的

参考例句：

• He is starting itinerant performance all over the world.他正在世界各地巡回演出。
• There is a general debate nowadays about the problem of itinerant workers.目前，针对流动工人的问题展开了普遍的争论。

9 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

10 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

11 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

12 spate   

n.泛滥，洪水，突然的一阵

参考例句：

• Police are investigating a spate of burglaries in the area.警察正在调查这一地区发生的大量盗窃案。
• Refugees crossed the border in full spate.难民大量地越过了边境。

13 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。