2007年VOA标准英语-Peaceful Kurdish Region Experiencing Growing Pa

By Brian Padden
Irbil, Iraq
22 August 2007

An economic boom is under way in the relatively¹ peaceful and secure northern region of Iraq.  But inflation is also on the rise and wages for some workers are actually decreasing.  VOA's Brian Padden reports from Irbil, in northern Iraq.

A Kurdish man walks out of a shop that sells brand new models of cars in downtown Irbil, northern Iraq, 16 Feb. 2005

The city of Irbil is under construction.  Its center is being transformed with new shopping malls, offices and hotels. City officials believe the generally secure environment in the region, along with an influx² of oil revenue and foreign assistance, will attract private investment and lead to long-term economic prosperity there. 

But this sense of optimism is not shared by many working-class Kurds.  Every day hundreds of day laborers³ gather on the street in hopes of finding construction work.  In the past, construction bosses would come to these locations and hire truckloads of workers.   The laborers say today these jobs are few and far between. 

The problem, says Mashud Abdulah, is the large number of people coming from other parts of Iraq. 

He says Arab workers have come here by the thousands and work for half the wages.

Not only are wages shrinking for many in the area, but inflation is on the rise.  Najim Addeen works for the ministry⁴ of justice.  He says his salary of $140 a month used to be enough to support his family of five.  

He says before they could afford many things, but in the last year everything has gotten so expensive. 

In one year, the rent for his small home has gone up almost 400 percent. 

Now he drives a taxi at night to earn extra money.

Many in the area complain that the local government is not doing enough to control inflation or protect the rights of Kurdish workers.

But officials say if the Kurdish region is to attract international business investment, it must embrace the rules of the market place.  That means businesses have to show they can increase productivity and control costs.

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

3 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。