VOA慢速英语--联合国称7000万难民在世界各地制造压力

UN: 70 Million Refugees Build Worldwide Pressure

The United Nations refugee agency says there are now more than 70 million people displaced in the world and the problem is growing.

The U.N. reports on refugees in its yearly publication, Global Trends. It provides a count of international refugees, asylum-seekers and people displaced within their own countries.

Thursday is World Refugee Day. U.N. High Commissioner¹ for Refugees Filippo Grandi told reporters that the refugee situation is going in what he called “the wrong direction.” He said, “There are new conflicts, new situations, producing refugees, adding themselves to the old ones. The old ones never get resolved.”

The Italian diplomat² spoke³ at a press conference called after release of the report named Global Trends: Forced Displacement⁴ in 2018.

Grandi said displaced people need safety from war, conflict and persecution⁵. He also warned that the “language around refugees and migrants is often divisive…” He said some countries are identifying refugees as threats to safety and jobs in host communities. But, he praised the acceptance of refugees by “…communities who are themselves hosting large numbers...”

This year’s report tells of people who struggle to cross rivers, deserts, fences and many barriers in an effort to escape repressive governments and violence.

Of the total, most are people displaced within their own country. The U.N. says 41 million people are internally displaced.

Many of the so-called “displacement situations” have lasted more than five years. The conflict in Syria, for example, has gone on for eight years with no apparent end, displacing 13 million people.

In South America, the crisis in Venezuela has driven an estimated four million people from the country. Many move fluidly across the borders with Brazil, Colombia and Peru. Venezuelans now make up the largest single group of asylum-seekers, 340,000 people, worldwide.

However, two-thirds of all refugees come from only five countries: Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia.

Grandi said the huge migrations⁶ cause great pressure on countries. He said this can lead them to take measures that are harmful to refugees. “We are in a very dangerous situation,” he said.

The official noted⁷ that the “largest supporter of refugees” in the world is the U.S. which is the U.N. refugee agency’s biggest donor⁸.

But he added that wealthy countries do not suffer the greatest difficulty linked to refugee crises. He said most refugees are in countries close to conflict areas. This means that poor and middle-income countries are hardest hit. “That is where we need to focus,” he said.

Grandi said refugees would like to go home, but live in a state of limbo⁹ for years because lasting¹⁰ answers to the problems they face get increasingly difficult.

I’m Mario Ritter Jr.

Words in This Story

trend –n. the general direction of some situation or condition

persecution –n. to treat someone cruelly or unfairly

divisive –adj. causing division or disagreement

focus –n. the main purpose or interest

limbo –n. a place or position that is neither bad nor good; in some religions, between heaven and hell

1 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

2 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

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 migrations   

n.迁移，移居( migration的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It foundered during the turmoils accompanying the Great Migrations. 它在随着民族大迁徙而出现的混乱中崩溃。 来自辞典例句
• Birds also have built-in timepieces which send them off on fall and spring migrations. 鸟类也有天生的时间感应器指导它们秋春迁移。 来自互联网

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

9 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。

10 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。