VOA常速英语2014--Criminal Gangs in El Salvador Return to War Path After Two-Year Truce 两年休战后萨尔瓦多再次陷入混乱

 

Criminal Gangs in El Salvador Return to War Path After Two-Year Truce¹ 两年休战后萨尔瓦多再次陷入混乱

WASHINGTON — Two years ago, two of the most violent gangs in El Salvador -- Mara Salvatrucha 13 and Barrio 18 -- signed a truce. But as fighting between the two criminal groups has been on the rise in recent months, so has the death toll².  Fears are starting to grow of a renewed gang war in one of Latin America's most dangerous countries.

华盛顿 — 两年前，萨尔瓦多两个最暴力的团伙——“Mara Salvatrucha 13”和“Barrio 18”签订停火协议。然而，这两个犯罪集团间的争斗最近几个月不断增加，死亡人数也不断升高。人们担心在拉丁美洲这个最危险的国家里将兴起新一轮的黑帮战火。

Majucla is one of the poorest and also one of the most violent communities in El Salvador. Located just north of the capital, San Salvador, Majucla is controlled by the infamous³ gang known as Mara Salvatrucha, or MS13. Shootings are frequent in the dirt road neighborhood, and no one is safe.

马卡拉是萨尔瓦多最贫穷和最暴力的社区之一。马卡拉位于首都圣萨尔瓦多北部，被臭名昭著的救世鳟鱼、也称马拉13团伙所控制。街道上时常听到枪声，没有人是安全的。 

The owner of a local bus line, Rigoberto Hernandez, said businesses have to pay to be spared.

埃尔南德斯经营着一家公车公司。他说，这里的商家为了免遭袭击，都得交“保护费”。

“It’s very dangerous because we have to work from 4:00 AM, and if somebody doesn’t like you, they can kill you at that time. As we say here, you have to pay to survive,” said Hernandez.

埃尔南德斯说：“这里非常危险。因为我们必须从清晨4点开始工作。如果有人看你不顺眼，他们可以随时杀死你。所以我们这儿的人都说，你要活命就得花钱。”

During the mid-1990s, fighting between Mara Salvatrucha and the rival Barrio 18 gang often killed up to 16 people a day. Between 2003 and 2009, hardline governments filled El Salvador's prisons with gang members without any impact on violent crime. Then, in March 2012, a left-wing government secretly negotiated a peace deal between the two groups, and the city's murder rate was almost cut in half. 

上世纪90年代中，救世鳟鱼与竞争对手巴里奥13之间的火拼常常每天造成16人死亡。2003年到2009年间，强硬派政府把许多帮派成员关进监狱，但是这对减少暴力犯罪却收效甚微。2012年3月，一个左翼政府秘密地推动两个团伙达成了一项和平协议，之后这座城市的谋杀率降低了将近一半。

The gangs created violence-free sanctuaries⁴ and rehabilitation⁵ centers, like bakeries, where former gang members could find jobs.

这些帮派建立了一些无暴力中心和活动中心，比如这间面包店，让前帮派成员能找份工作。

However, police now say that since January, the murder rate has increased, reaching as many as nine homicides per day.

但是警察说，今年1月以来，凶杀案发生率不断升高，已经达到最多每天9起。

Police inspector⁶ Perez-Reyes would not confirm that the government had a role in the truce, but said it appears the gangs are back at war.

警务督察佩雷斯 - 雷耶斯不承认政府在和平协议中扮演了某种角色，但是他说，看起来黑帮间又开始交火了。

“We have nothing to do with the truce. Apparently⁷ it’s an agreement between the gangs. But given the rise in homicides, we think the truce is over,” said Perez-Reyes.

雷耶斯说：“我们和那个和平协议毫无关系。显然那是帮派间的协定。现在凶杀案数量增加，我们想停战协议已经结束了。”

Residents in the capital said that even when the murder rate was down, racketeering and other crimes continued. Bus drivers still have to pay gangs a so-called “protection tax”, or renta.

首都的居民们说，即便在凶杀率低的时候，敲诈勒索和其他犯罪仍然在继续。司机们仍然需要向帮派支付所谓的“保护税”，或者“租金”。

Adam Blackwell, security chief for the Organization of American States, said a temporary truce is not enough to permanently⁸ rid El Salvador and other Latin American countries of the scourge⁹ of gang crime. 

美洲国家组织安全主任布莱克威尔说，临时性的协议不足以把萨尔瓦多和其他拉美国家从黑帮犯罪的灾难中永远解救出来。

“What happened was a truce. A truce is when at a moment in time there is a cease-fire between fighters in a war. What follows is peace and peace is always more complicated and always takes more time. That’s what we are trying to build,” said Blackwell.

布莱克威尔说：“当时的情况是达成了一个和平协议。和平协议就是在一段时间内交战双方停火。接下来的是和平。和平总是很复杂，而且需要更长的时间。我们现在要做的就是实现和平。”

Analysts¹⁰ said gang members need an alternative to street life, and rehabilitation programs can be complex and costly¹¹.

分析人士说，帮派成员需要有街头打斗之外的其他选择，然而，重返正常生活计划很复杂且耗资不菲。

 

Hopes are high that the incoming government of leftist President-elect Salvador Sanchez Ceren will be able to curb¹² gang violence and start building such programs.  He takes office in June.

人们寄予厚望的是即将于6月上任的左翼总统桑切斯·塞伦的新政府能够遏制黑帮犯罪，开始建立这类项目。

1 truce   

n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束

参考例句：

• The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。
• She had thought of flying out to breathe the fresh air in an interval of truce.她想跑出去呼吸一下休战期间的新鲜空气。

2 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。

3 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

4 sanctuaries   

n.避难所( sanctuary的名词复数 )；庇护；圣所；庇护所

参考例句：

• The designation of special marine reserves and marine sanctuaries shall be subject to the State Council for approval. 海洋特别保护区、海上自然保护区的确定，须经国务院批准。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After 1965 he acquiesced when they established sanctuaries on that soil. 1965年以后，他默认了他们在那块土地上建立庇护所。 来自辞典例句

5 rehabilitation   

n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位

参考例句：

• He's booked himself into a rehabilitation clinic.他自己联系了一家康复诊所。
• No one can really make me rehabilitation of injuries.已经没有人可以真正令我的伤康复了。

6 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

9 scourge   

n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏

参考例句：

• Smallpox was once the scourge of the world.天花曾是世界的大患。
• The new boss was the scourge of the inefficient.新老板来了以后，不称职的人就遭殃了。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

12 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。