VOA标准英语2008年-Several Children Die Among Migrants Trying to R

At least 15 would be migrants, many of them young children, have died off the coast of Spain in an attempt to reach Europe from Africa in a small boat. The incident is the second this week in which would-be migrants to Spain have perished, and comes as both European and African leaders are again addressing the migration¹ issue. Brent Latham has more from our West Africa bureau in Dakar.

The migrants were aboard a small craft that was attempting to make the crossing from Africa to Spain. Spanish police said of the 15 reported deaths, at least nine were children, aged² from nine months to four years, according to rescued survivors³.

A total of 34 survivors were found by the Spanish Coast Guard about 40 kilometers off the coast of southern Spain. The Spanish police said that the exact number and age of the dead could not be confirmed, because survivors had thrown some of the bodies overboard.

Survivors told police they had spent five days at sea.

The tragedy was the second this week off the coast of Spain involving Sub-Saharan African migrants. Earlier in the week at least 14 Nigerian migrants are believed to have drowned when their boat capsized in heavy seas.

Attempts to make the journey from Africa to Europe increase during the European summer, says Olivia Acosta, a Spain-based spokeswoman for the Red Cross. The Red Cross is called upon to assist immigrants after they have arrived.

Acosta says in summer the seas are calmer, but the intense heat is oppressive.

The rough conditions can be especially difficult on children. A spokesman for Save the Children in Spain, who did not want to be named, said mothers often bring their young children along on the journey.

He says that the children are particularly vulnerable, but their mothers are reluctant to leave them behind in poverty.

This latest tragedy comes after some African leaders condemned⁵ new European Union policies on illegal immigrants. At a conference on the issue in Dakar on Wednesday, many African representatives spoke⁴ harshly about new EU measures that could increase arrests and deportations of migrants.

Senegal's Foreign Minister, Cheikh Tidiane Gadio, told reporters that he was surprised by the EU initiatives. He said that "the time has past when Europe decided⁶ things on its own and Africa fell in line."

Under the new migration pact⁷, if it is finalized⁸ later this year, the EU would expel more illegal immigrants and promote legal migration. One component which would attract more educated migrants from Africa has been heavily criticized by some detractors who have said the measures will make Africa poorer

1 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

2 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 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。

6 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。

7 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

8 finalized   

vt.完成（finalize的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The draft of this article has been finalized [done]. 这篇文章已经定稿。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The draft was revised several times before it was finalized. 稿子几经删改才定下来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》