英语听力—环球英语 656 Extra-Legal Economies

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Robin² Basselin.
Voice 2
And I’m Ryan Geertsma. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 3
“The land is our property. We bought it from a farmer who was willing to sell to us. Although we do not hold any legal document for the ownership³, it is our property.
Voice 1
These are the words of Phillip Tesha. Tesha is coffee grower in Tanzania. He was speaking to the American television program Commanding Heights. Tesha has a problem. His family has been farming land in Tanzania for many generations. But Tesha cannot prove that he owns any of the land he farms. No one in his family has a title or any legal papers to prove it is their property. Situations like Tesha’s are common in many countries in the world. Today’s Spotlight is about this problem and a possible solution.
Voice 2
66 percent of people in the world do not have legal papers to prove they own their property or business. Without these papers, these people cannot be a part of their national economy. They cannot use their property or business to borrow money from a bank and invest⁴ to make their business better. They cannot create wealth.
Voice 1
Hernando de Soto is an economist⁵ - he is an expert in economics⁶. He works⁷ to help people like Phillip Tesha. Hernando de Soto wants to help poor people get legal documents for their property. De Soto explained his goal.
Voice 4
“...To discover what poor people need. Then translate it into government action.”
Voice 2
Hernando de Soto began thinking about the difference between rich and poor people as a child. De Soto’s family is from South America, from Peru. But his father’s work moved the family to Switzerland. De Soto travelled through many wealthy countries in Europe. His parents also made sure he travelled back to Peru often.
Voice 1
As he travelled, De Soto compared wealthy European countries with the poverty in Peru. He wondered why one country was rich and another poor. He did not think the Europeans were more intelligent or more hard working than the Peruvians.
Voice 2
As an adult, de Soto was a successful businessman. He became wealthy. He retired⁸ at the age of 38. When he retired, he decided⁹ to study the causes of poverty. He returned to Peru. In 1980, De Soto began an organisation¹⁰ called the Institute for Liberty¹¹ and Democracy¹². He decided the best way to study poor people was to listen to them. He employed a team of researchers . This team talked to poor people living in Lima, Peru. From 1981 to 1984, his group collected stories and numbers. What they discovered was amazing!
Voice 1
De Soto’s team discovered that the majority of Peru’s businesses were owned by poor people. However, these people did not have any legal papers to prove that what they owned really belonged to them.
Voice 2
De Soto and his team began to call this situation being “extra-legal”. In this term ‘extra’ means "outside" or "not included". So “extra-legal” describes people who are not protected by the law. During three years of research, de Soto’s team discovered that 90% of small industry in Peru was owned and run by people working in the extra-legal system. In his first book, The Other Path, de Soto reported his group’s findings¹³. They saw that
Voice 5
“Peru, in fact, had become two nations - one where the legal system gave rights to a special few, and another where the majority of the Peruvian people lived and worked outside the law, and by their own local rules.”
Voice 1
People in the extra-legal economy in Peru could easily be oppressed¹⁴. De Soto’s team listened to many stories with these problems.
Voice 2
One story was about a man named Eusebio. Eusebio’s family had lived on their land for many generations. One day, men came to talk to Eusebio’s family. They brought false legal papers. With these papers, the men claimed ownership of the land. It did not matter that Eusebio’s father and grandfather had farmed the land for one hundred years. Without legal papers, Eusebio’s family could not prove they owned the land they farmed. So, Eusebio’s family was forced to work for these men.
Voice 1
Eusebio’s small farm had been producing just enough for his family to live year to year. Without legal papers for his property, Eusebio could not use the property to borrow money from a bank. A loan¹⁵ could have helped Eusebio to buy more seed for his farm. It could have also helped him expand his farm or begin a new business. However, without these legal papers Eusebio had few choices.
Voice 2
Extra-legal people have these and many other problems. So de Soto’s team began to wonder why so many Peruvians stayed in the extra-legal system. De Soto’s team asked many questions.
Voice 1
De Soto’s team recognized that Peru had too many barriers - barriers that prevented people from getting legal papers. It would take an extra-legal person over one year to document a small business. It was just too difficult to become legal. So, de Soto’s team worked with the government to change the laws. Today, it is easier for Peru’s extra-legal people to request and receive legal documents. And after they do, they can be involved in their national economy.
Voice 2
Like thousands of other Peruvians, Eusebio got legal papers for his land because of the work of de Soto and his team. Many of the people living in Eusebio’s community also received legal papers. Now Eusebio and his children and their children will be protected. They will receive all the profits they make from their farm. And, if necessary, they can borrow money and invest to make their farm better.
Voice 1
De Soto’s ideas were very successful in Peru. Because they worked so well, many world leaders wanted to learn from de Soto’s model. De Soto’s organization now works in many countries all over the world. They estimate¹⁶ that together, the world’s poor people own a huge amount of extra-legal property - worth more than 9 million million [9,000,000,000,000] US dollars. If these people could invest these resources legally, many of them could find a way out of poverty.
Voice 2
One country where de Soto’s organization has worked is Tanzania. De Soto’s workers have heard Philip Tesha’s story. One day Tesha and his community may be able to get legal documents for their land. They will be able to borrow and invest. Their hard work will expand their farm.
Voice 1
In each country, de Soto’s team begins the same way. They ask questions. They listen. They see the hard work of extra-legal people. They see how many resources the poor have. At the end of his book The Mystery of Capital, de Soto writes:
Voice 4
“The poor are not the problem. They are the solution.”
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 ownership   

n.所有(权)，所有制

参考例句：

• The house is under new ownership.那栋房子已易新主。
• He claimed ownership of the house.他声称那幢房子归他所有。

4 invest   

v.投资；投入(时间等)；授予，赋予

参考例句：

• I have decided to invest in a new car.我已经决定买一辆新汽车。
• The best time to invest is now.现在是投资的最佳时机。

5 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

6 economics   

n.经济学，经济情况

参考例句：

• He is studying economics,which subject is very important.他正在学习经济学，该学科是很重要的。
• One can't separate politics from economics.不能把政治与经济割裂开来。

7 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

8 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

9 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

10 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

11 liberty   

n.自由，自由权；冒昧行为

参考例句：

• He stood for the cause of liberty and justice.他为自由和正义的事业而奋斗。
• You are at liberty to do as you please.你可以随意行事。

12 democracy   

n.民主政治，民主制度；民主精神，民主作风

参考例句：

• Democracy is based on good will and mutual understanding.民主建立在善意和相互理解的基础上。
• Did democracy have its beginnings in Athens? 民主制度是创始于雅典吗？

13 findings   

n.发现物( finding的名词复数 )；调查（或研究）的结果；（陪审团的）裁决

参考例句：

• It behoves us to study these findings carefully. 我们理应认真研究这些发现。
• Their findings have been widely disseminated . 他们的研究成果已经广为传播。

14 oppressed   

adj. 被压迫的，郁闷的 动词oppress的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• It'seemed that the realisation of his life's dream oppressed him with overjoy. 夙愿得偿似乎使他欣喜若狂。
• The bad eggs wielded power, while the good people were oppressed. 坏人当道，好人受气

15 loan   

n.贷款；借出的东西；借；vt.借出；贷予

参考例句：

• I asked the bank to help me with a loan.我请银行给我一笔贷款。
• Has the bank okayed your request for a loan?银行批准你的贷款要求了吗？

16 estimate   

n.估计，估量；评价，看法；vt.估计，估量

参考例句：

• We estimate the cost to be five thousand dollars.我们估计费用为5000美元。
• The lowest estimate would put the worth of the jewel at ＄200.按最低的评估这块宝石也值200美元。