视频幸存者讲述危地马拉种族灭绝恐怖

AS IT IS 2015-09-07 Survivors¹ Remember Guatemalan Genocide 视频幸存者讲述危地马拉种族灭绝恐怖

Researchers are recording² the stories of survivors of the Guatemalan civil war and genocide.

Fighting in Guatemala started in the 1960s and lasted more than 30 years. Tens of thousands of native Mayans were killed. The video collection will save the memories and descriptions of survivors. It is hoped that this will help prevent future genocides.

As a child, Jesus Tacu lived through tragedies most people hope they will never experience.

The day his father was killed was just like any day, he says.

“The dogs ran out to meet him. … But that day, my father did not return.”

Jesus Tacu is one of many survivors whose statements are being recorded on video to document their experiences. Their stories are being collected by partners in the project: The Forensic³ Anthropology⁴ Foundation of Guatemala and the California-based USC Shoah Foundation.

Sandra Gruner-Domic works with the USC Shoah foundation.

She says, “The military came in and separated the villages in groups and made one group kill the other. The children, they had to witness everything. Many of the survivors we have interviewed were kids at the time, and they described the pain of seeing their families, their mothers raped⁵ or their sisters killed.”

Some 200,000 civilians⁶ were killed during Guatemala’s 36-year civil war, she adds. Most were Mayans, whose ancestors had lived in the area for centuries. The killings⁷ took place mainly in the early 1980s.

Sandra Gruner-Domic says the killings were carried out because the Guatemalan military was fighting different rebel groups. Many Mayans wanted to oust⁸ the country’s rulers. At the time, the United States and Soviet⁹ Union were competing for control of many areas.

She says, “After the Second World War, the fear of spreading communism in Central America was huge.”

The USC Shoah Foundation is based at the University of Southern California. The foundation says the Guatemalan genocide is not well understood in modern history.

The group has already collected 30 audio-visual statements from genocide survivors. It hopes to tape 100 by the end of the year. They will be added to the foundation’s Visual History Archive. It includes about 53,000 recordings¹⁰ of survivors from genocides, including Europe’s Holocaust¹¹ during World War II.

Words in This Story

tragedies – n. very sad or bad situations, often involving great loss

anthropology – n. the study of human races, societies and cultures

foundation – n. an organization or group that operates with donations from people who want to help society

audio-visual – adj. able to see and hear something at the same time

1 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

2 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

3 forensic   

adj.法庭的，雄辩的

参考例句：

• The report included his interpretation of the forensic evidence.该报告包括他对法庭证据的诠释。
• The judge concluded the proceeding on 10:30 Am after one hour of forensic debate.经过近一个小时的法庭辩论后，法官于10时30分宣布休庭。

4 anthropology   

n.人类学

参考例句：

• I believe he has started reading up anthropology.我相信他已开始深入研究人类学。
• Social anthropology is centrally concerned with the diversity of culture.社会人类学主要关于文化多样性。

5 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

6 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

7 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

8 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。

9 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

10 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

11 holocaust   

n.大破坏；大屠杀

参考例句：

• The Auschwitz concentration camp always remind the world of the holocaust.奥辛威茨集中营总是让世人想起大屠杀。
• Ahmadinejad is denying the holocaust because he's as brutal as Hitler was.内贾德否认大屠杀，因为他像希特勒一样残忍。