VOA标准英语2009-Indian Students Claim Epidemic of Racist Vio

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has condemned¹ as "senseless acts of violence" a series of race attacks on Indian students in Melbourne. The Indian high commissioner² is demanding greater protection for Indians studying in Australia, as state authorities in the southern state of Victoria draw up new laws to crack down on hate crimes.
　
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd (File)

A series of assaults on Indian students in Australia prompted about 3,000 people to take part in a recent rally in Melbourne to demand greater protection from the authorities, who are accused of doing too little to stem the violence.

There were ugly clashes between protesters and police. More than a dozen people were arrested.

Indian High Commissioner to Australia Sujatha Singh says many young expatriates are furious that their concerns have not been properly addressed.

"Our Indian communities overseas are law abiding³. They go by the rules and, if they're being provoked into this [protests], it is because they have very real concerns," said Singh.
　
Activists⁴ of Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party protest near Australian Embassy in New Delhi, India, 04 Jun 2009

In the past year, about 70 attacks on young Indians in Melbourne have been reported and there are claims by community groups that the vast majority have been racially motivated.

The latest victim of the violence - a 25-year-old Indian student - is in a critical condition after being stabbed with a screwdriver⁵ by intruders at a birthday party.

His friend, Srinivas Vedantam, insists the attack was carried out by racist⁶ thugs.

"When they entered the party and they started abusing - using the racial abuses, like 'You black Indians,' like that stuff. So it ended up with a racial attack," said Vedantam.

However, senior police officers doubt that the violence directed toward the Indian community in Australia is exclusively motivated by racial prejudice.

Victoria Police Chief Simon Overland insists that students, in general, have become "easy targets" for opportunistic criminals.

"It's partly violence against Indian students," he said. "It's escalating⁷ robberies and we have used the term 'soft-target robberies.' Now, the Indian students have taken that as referring directly to them; it's not. What we have seen is that robberies are now happening more directed against people in the street, directed against people who are wandering around with laptop computers, mobile phones, iPods, cash. And, if they're alone, they're vulnerable."

The attacks have caused diplomatic friction⁸ between Canberra and New Delhi.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has publicly reassured⁹ the Indian government that Australia is not a racist country and says he was appalled¹⁰ by the assaults.

"These are senseless acts of violence. Those who carry out these attacks stand condemned," he said.

In response, the Rudd government has set up a special task force to deal with the violence.

The new unit will be lead by a former chief of Australia's Special Forces, Duncan Lewis, who is one of the government's most-senior national security advisers¹¹.

Officials in Victoria also want those convicted of racially-motivated offenses¹² to be given more severe punishments.

Victoria Attorney General Rob Hulls¹³ says judges should take bigotry¹⁴ into account when passing sentence.

"We want to send a message that any crime that's committed purely¹⁵ based on hatred¹⁶ or prejudice against a group of people is not to be tolerated, but it ought be something that is taken into account in the sentencing principles in this state," he said.

But some Indian students, like Jayasanker Bagiepalli, are too fearful to remain in Australia and are heading home.

"See what happens here? We are being attacked. Not once, twice. Many people, many Indians are being attacked. That's what happens here. So if this country, you know, people from India really stops coming here. My parents doesn't (sic) want me to stay here," said Bagiepalli,

About 90,000 Indian students are living in Australia. They generate millions of dollars for the national economy, each year.

The Australian wave of violence has made headline news across India.

Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan has rejected an honorary doctorate¹⁷ from a university in Queensland to protest the assaults on Indian students in Australia.

1 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

2 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。

3 abiding   

adj.永久的，持久的，不变的

参考例句：

• He had an abiding love of the English countryside.他永远热爱英国的乡村。
• He has a genuine and abiding love of the craft.他对这门手艺有着真挚持久的热爱。

4 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》

5 screwdriver   

n.螺丝起子；伏特加橙汁鸡尾酒

参考例句：

• He took a screwdriver and teased out the remaining screws.他拿出螺丝刀把其余的螺丝卸了下来。
• The electric drill can also be used as a screwdriver.这把电钻也可用作螺丝刀。

6 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

7 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

8 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

9 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

12 offenses   

n.进攻( offense的名词复数 )；（球队的）前锋；进攻方法；攻势

参考例句：

• It's wrong of you to take the child to task for such trifling offenses. 因这类小毛病责备那孩子是你的不对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Thus, Congress cannot remove an executive official except for impeachable offenses. 因此，除非有可弹劾的行为，否则国会不能罢免行政官员。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

13 hulls   

船体( hull的名词复数 )； 船身； 外壳； 豆荚

参考例句：

• Hulls may be removed by aspiration on screens. 脱下的种皮，可由筛子上的气吸装置吸除。
• When their object is attained they fall off like empty hulls from the kernel. 当他们的目的达到以后，他们便凋谢零落，就象脱却果实的空壳一样。

14 bigotry   

n.偏见，偏执，持偏见的行为[态度]等

参考例句：

• She tried to dissociate herself from the bigotry in her past.她力图使自己摆脱她以前的偏见。
• At least we can proceed in this matter without bigotry.目前这件事咱们至少可以毫无偏见地进行下去。

15 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

16 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

17 doctorate   

n.(大学授予的)博士学位

参考例句：

• He hasn't enough credits to get his doctorate.他的学分不够取得博士学位。
• Where did she do her doctorate?她在哪里攻读博士？