VOA慢速英语2014 越南农民抗议政府土地交易

 

AS IT IS 2014-12-04 Vietnamese Farmers Protest Government Land Deals 越南农民抗议政府土地交易

In Vietnam, the state owns the land. The government gives people permission to lease land -- pay for its use for a limited time. As the economy has grown, some Vietnamese have been protesting illegal seizures¹ of land -- also known as “land grabs.” The latest trial of land rights protesters shows problems with the system.            

A group of people recently gathered near a court near Hanoi to show their support at the appeal trial of four land rights activists². The four were arrested while protesting a reported land grab earlier this year.  The court sentenced the activists to between 12 and 20 months for interfering³ with public order.

Both parents of 31-year-old Trinh Ba Phuong were on trial. He says he believes that this trial was a “tool for oppression and land grabs.”

He says local officials first announced plans to take control of the land in 2008. The payment offered was too low, and 356 families have refused the money. He says officials did not attempt to negotiate with the residents.

Video recordings⁴ are said to show attempts to take the land by force in April. The videos have appeared on social media. Over 150,000 views have been registered on the YouTube website. 

In one video, many people wearing unusually shaped hats are seen crossing a field. Men wearing green police uniforms and official red arm bands are running after them.                                                             

Trinh Ba Phuong’s younger brother is 25-year-old Tu.

He says many of the farmers now face big economic problems because they have no way of earning their living.

Protests by Vietnamese farmers are not new. In many ways this case shows the continued issue of land rights in the country. It is easy for the state to keep on owning land. In this way, those permitted to use the land do not negotiate directly with developers. Prices are supposed to be set based on market sale value. But this seemingly does not happen in real life.

A report for the National Assembly in 2012 says the number of complaints involving land grabs and compensation was a serious issue. It said these objections made up 70 percent of all complaints to governmental agencies from 2004 to 2011.                                                                               

Jonathan London is a Vietnam expert at City University Hong Kong.  He says the state has not dealt with some of the root causes of the disputes.  

 “And in the absence of more effective institutional solutions to this problem, these kinds of street level or spontaneous uprisings are likely to persist because the supply of land is not increasing. And when people are displaced or what they claim that they are the victims of injustice⁵ that the legal system is not frequently seen as a promising⁶ option.”

Jonathan London says the use of video and social media has become a common tool for protesters to make known their objections.

“People in Vietnam are increasingly becoming social movement entrepreneurs.  They are trying to call attention to issues...”

He says it is important not to overstate this trend. But still, he says, it represents a skillful attempt by people with comparatively little power. He says the activists have succeeded in bringing influence to bear on those who have power and have yet to respond to their needs.

Words in This Story

lease – v. to use something for a period of time in return for payment

residents -  n. people who live in a particular place

spontaneous – adj.  done or said in a natural and often sudden way without a lot of thought or planning

compensation – n. something that is done or given to make up for damage, trouble, etc.

trend – n. a general  direction or change

1 seizures   

n.起获( seizure的名词复数 )；没收；充公；起获的赃物

参考例句：

• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year. 今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Other causes of unconsciousness predisposing to aspiration lung abscess are convulsive seizures. 造成吸入性肺脓肿昏迷的其他原因，有惊厥发作。 来自辞典例句

2 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》

3 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。

4 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

5 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

6 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。