VOA慢速英语2020--第一批罗兴亚难民抵达与世隔绝的孟加拉岛

Officials in Bangladesh on Friday sent the first group of more than 1,500 Rohingya refugees to live on an isolated¹ island. The move came as international organizations have called for the process to be stopped.

The 1,642 refugees left on seven Bangladeshi naval² ships for the three-hour trip from Chittagong to Bhasan Char³ island. The information came from an official who could not be named.

Bangladeshi reporter Saleh Noman traveled with the refugees. He said by phone from the island that health workers checked the refugees for temperatures and gave face coverings to protect against COVID-19 at the start of the trip. They were then given rice, eggs and chickens for lunch.

Where is Bhasan Char?

Bhasan Char is about 60 kilometers from the mainland. No one has ever lived there. The island was once regularly underwater after heavy rains. It surfaced from the water of the Bay of Bengal only 20 years ago.

The island now has flood protection barriers for houses, hospitals and mosques⁵ at a cost of more than $112 million.

The new buildings can shelter about 100,000 people. That is just a small number of the million Rohingya Muslims who are now living in crowded refugee camps in Cox's Bazar.

The builders say it is like a modern town with homes, schools, play areas and roads. It also has a water system and storm shelters. Foreign reporters, however, have not been permitted to visit the island.

The director of building development on Bhasan Char is Commodore Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury. He told local reporters on the island that the international community did not need to worry about the safety of the refugees.

He said he expects that the United Nations and other aid groups would be pleased with the condition after their visit. Asked when that would be, he answered that the government is working on it.

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has repeatedly told the U.N. that no refugees would be forced to go to the island. But officials in Cox's Bazar did not say how the refugees were chosen for the move to the island.

Rights groups called for a halt

International aid agencies and the U.N. have been loudly against moving the refugees to the island since it was first announced in 2015. They feared that a strong storm could destroy the island and put many lives in danger.

The U.N. said in a statement Wednesday that it has not been involved in the move. "Rohingya refugees must be able to make a free and informed decision about relocating to Bhasan Char," the U.N. said.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on Thursday urged the Bangladeshi government to cancel the plan.

About 700,000 Rohingya fled to the camps in Cox's Bazar after August 2017. That is when the military in Buddhist-majority Myanmar began a violent campaign against Muslims following an attack by Rohingya rebels.

The military-led campaign included rapes⁶, killings⁷ and the destruction of thousands of homes. It was called an "ethnic⁸ cleansing⁹" by international rights groups and the U.N.

Bangladesh has tried to send the Rohingya back to Myanmar. But they are unwilling¹⁰ to go because of fear for their safety. They are also not recognized as citizens in Myanmar, making them stateless people.

Words in This Story

isolated – adj. separate from others

mosque⁴ - n. a building that is used for Muslim religious services

cleanse¹¹ - v. to make something clean, remove dirt

relocate - v. to move to a new place

1 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

2 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

3 char   

v.烧焦；使...燃烧成焦炭

参考例句：

• Without a drenching rain,the forest fire will char everything.如果没有一场透地雨，森林大火将烧尽一切。
• The immediate batch will require deodorization to char the protein material to facilitate removal in bleaching.脱臭烧焦的蛋白质原料易在脱色中去除。

4 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

5 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

6 rapes   

n.芸苔( rape的名词复数 )；强奸罪；强奸案；肆意损坏v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的第三人称单数 )；强奸

参考例句：

• The man who had committed several rapes was arrested. 那个犯了多起强奸案的男人被抓起来了。 来自辞典例句
• The incidence of reported rapes rose 0.8 percent. 美国联邦调查局还发布了两份特别报告。 来自互联网

7 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

8 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

9 cleansing   

n. 净化(垃圾) adj. 清洁用的 动词cleanse的现在分词

参考例句：

• medicated cleansing pads for sensitive skin 敏感皮肤药物清洗棉
• Soap is not the only cleansing agent. 肥皂并不是唯一的清洁剂。

10 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

11 cleanse   

vt.使清洁，使纯洁，清洗

参考例句：

• Health experts are trying to cleanse the air in cities. 卫生专家们正设法净化城市里的空气。
• Fresh fruit juices can also cleanse your body and reduce dark circles.新鲜果汁同样可以清洁你的身体,并对黑眼圈同样有抑制作用。