VOA常速英语2007年-Analysts Find Kashmir Conflict Takes Toll on Me

By Shahnawaz Khan
Srinagar
25 December 2007

The two-decade old conflict in Indian-administered Kashmir has taken a toll¹ on the mental health of the region's people, with many complaining of post-traumatic stress disorders³. Shahnawaz Khan in Srinagar has this VOA report.

Tahira Begum is one of hundreds of Kashmir's so-called 'half widows,' a term used to describe women whose husbands have disappeared, after being picked up by state security agencies.

Begum's husband has been missing since 2002.

She sews clothes to feed her three children. Like many caught in Kashmir's conflict, Begun depends on pills to battle depression and related disorders.

"I cannot see too much of joy or sorrow. I just faint. Like at marriage ceremonies or at mourning. I was at a marriage ceremony last week, and as the women were singing, my teeth chattered⁴ and I fainted," she said.

Indian-controlled Kashmir has suffered an armed rebellion by Muslim militants⁵ since 1989. In the years since, hospitals say they have seen rising numbers of patients needing psychiatric help.

Arshad Hussain is a psychiatrist⁶ at the only psychiatric hospital in Srinagar, the summer capital of the region.

"Prior to '90, this hospital used to cater⁷ around 1,800 to 2,000 patients per year. And, last year, this hospital saw around 60,000 patients," said Hussain.

Hussain says that most of the increase, though not all, is related to the conflict.

Some patients, like Tahira Begum, suffer depression. But there are other problems.

"We have a disease called post traumatic stress disorder², which was absolutely not present prior to the conflict. We have [a] rise in substance abuse, a lot of it can be attributed to conflict. We have many cases of depression," said Begum.

Post-traumatic stress often is linked to incidents in which a person suffers injury or attack, experiences great fear, or witnesses extreme violence.

Hussain explains what they suffer.

"They start re-experiencing this event in the dreams, day-to-day life," said Hussain. "There are sometimes vivid images, which move in front of them. And then, the second complex thing that happens to them is avoidance. Then they are always in a state of hyper-arousal."

On the border between India and Pakistan, Kashmir is claimed by both countries, with control divided between the two. Nearly 70,000 people have died in the insurgency⁸, and around 8,000 have disappeared, many taken in custody⁹ by state security agencies.

Both Indian troops and militants have been accused of human rights abuses in the region.

In the past few years, India and Pakistan have improved relations, after nearly going to war in 2002. Still, they have made little progress in resolving their dispute over Kashmir, which has been the cause of two of the three wars the two countries have fought.

While the governments negotiate, doctors such as Hussain say, mental health problems will continue to rise among those trapped in the conflict.

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

3 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 chattered   

（人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤

参考例句：

• They chattered away happily for a while. 他们高兴地闲扯了一会儿。
• We chattered like two teenagers. 我们聊着天，像两个十多岁的孩子。

5 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

6 psychiatrist   

n.精神病专家；精神病医师

参考例句：

• He went to a psychiatrist about his compulsive gambling.他去看精神科医生治疗不能自拔的赌瘾。
• The psychiatrist corrected him gently.精神病医师彬彬有礼地纠正他。

7 cater   

vi.(for/to)满足，迎合；(for)提供饮食及服务

参考例句：

• I expect he will be able to cater for your particular needs.我预计他能满足你的特殊需要。
• Most schools cater for children of different abilities.大多数学校能够满足具有不同天资的儿童的需要。

8 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

9 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。