美国国家公共电台 NPR--The U.S. delays extending political safe haven status to people from Hong Kong

The U.S. delays extending political safe haven¹ status to people from Hong Kong

Transcript²

The U.S. has offered Hong Kong residents safe haven for up to 18 months. But now that time is up — leaving thousands in immigration limbo³.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

In 2021, President Biden offered people from Hong Kong already in the U.S. temporary asylum⁴. That meant they didn't have to go back to the Chinese territory where some say they might face political persecution⁵. But that reprieve⁶ is up, and the U.S. is waiting until the last minute to extend the safe haven status. As NPR's Emily Feng reports, that's left thousands of other Hong Kongers in limbo.

EMILY FENG, BYLINE⁷: Cam Koo was a student activist⁸ in Hong Kong. And when that became unsafe, he came to the U.S. nearly 18 months ago to work as a lawyer under something called the Deferred⁹ Enforced Departure or DED that gave anyone with a Hong Kong ID or passport 18 months to live and work in the U.S., but not a path to citizenship¹⁰.

CAM KOO: It has provided me an alternative pathways where I can still engage in Hong Kong's politics and at the same time also actually work in a field that has always been my dream.

FENG: Giving politically outspoken¹¹ Hong Kongers safe haven was a way for the U.S. to push back on Beijing's now complete political control over Hong Kong. But now that DED expires February 5. And Koo's job, his life in the U.S. and maybe his freedom could go with it, he fears.

KOO: If they don't renew it, I can't work at all. They would just terminate me on the day if I don't get the renewal¹².

FENG: He's among many Hong Kong activists¹³ who've been worried lately. Anna Kwok is executive director for the Hong Kong Democracy Council, a Washington advocacy group lobbying for a DED extension. She's critical the U.S. government has not decided¹⁴ yet on a DED extension, even as its last days tick down.

ANNA KWOK: These are people's lives. And people are in a very vulnerable position when they don't really know where they're headed next.

FENG: More than 3,000 Hong Kongers could be impacted if their status isn't renewed on time, especially political activists. One of them is Huen Lam in Washington, D.C. She left Hong Kong after campaigning for an opposition¹⁵ politician who came under persecution. And now in the U.S., Lam's continued her pro-democracy political activism.

HUEN LAM: I'm very anxious just talking about it and very stressful because that isn't a path that I envisioned for myself. So I think prison would be a very likely option if I were to return to Hong Kong.

FENG: With every DED, Lam gets another 18 months of freedom, she says. But there is never a guarantee of that.

Emily Feng, NPR News.

1 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 limbo   

n.地狱的边缘；监狱

参考例句：

• His life seemed stuck in limbo and he could not go forward and he could not go back.他的生活好像陷入了不知所措的境地，进退两难。
• I didn't know whether my family was alive or dead.I felt as if I was in limbo.我不知道家人是生是死，感觉自己茫然无措。

4 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。

5 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。

6 reprieve   

n.暂缓执行（死刑）；v.缓期执行；给…带来缓解

参考例句：

• He was saved from the gallows by a lastminute reprieve.最后一刻的缓刑令把他从绞架上解救了下来。
• The railway line, due for closure, has been granted a six-month reprieve.本应停运的铁路线获准多运行6 个月。

7 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

8 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

9 deferred   

adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从

参考例句：

• The department deferred the decision for six months. 这个部门推迟了六个月才作决定。
• a tax-deferred savings plan 延税储蓄计划

10 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

11 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

12 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。

13 activists   

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》

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

15 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。