VOA标准英语2010年-Haitian Adoptions Slowed by Bureaucrac

Thousands of children are languishing¹ in earthquake shattered Haiti, as the government clamps down on families and organizations trying to provide them a better life.

Malachi, 2, will soon board a plane bound for his new home in Pennsylvania.  He is one of six Haitian orphans² who departed Port Au Prince earlier this week, days after Haitian police seized them on their way to the airport and sent them to a tent city, worried they were being kidnapped. 

The development was a shock to Joshua Manges and his wife, who had been trying to adopt Malachi for nearly two years.

"Everything we've had, we've had in line for quite a while now, and for them to freak out and assume the worst... and then civilians³ caused almost a riot; to detain him and his escorts and stick them in a tent city in rural Port Au Prince, that was pretty scary for us, but God provides," he said.  "God protects his children."
 
Joshua and Katy Manges began the process of adopting Malachi, born with a deformity, when he was a couple of months old.  But then the devastating⁴ earthquake that struck January 12 caused the Haitian government to halt all adoptions⁶ without the proper, signed documentation.

The recent arrest and release of a group of U.S. church missionaries⁷, trying to take a busload of children across the border to the Dominican Republic without official paperwork, further complicated the adoption⁵ process overall.

The director of His House Children's Home in Miami, which helped the Manges family with accommodations, acknowledges that the government needs to ensure due diligence in order to prevent child trafficking.  Still, she says she hopes the Haitian government will facilitate the adoption of its kids, overseas.

For Katy Manges, the trials of the last long months are behind her.  She's just happy to be able to bring Malachi home to meet his three siblings⁸, including one adopted from Africa.
 
"It's been a crazy rollercoaster up and down; it's been a long haul, but it's been well worth it.  I'd do it again if I had to [to] get him.  I'd go through it all again," she said.
 
Still, thousands of Haitian children like Malachi remain in orphanages⁹.  United Nations officials estimate there may be one million unaccompanied or orphaned¹⁰ kids who lost a parent in last month's quake in Haiti. 

 

1 languishing   

a. 衰弱下去的

参考例句：

• He is languishing for home. 他苦思家乡。
• How long will she go on languishing for her red-haired boy? 为想见到她的红头发的儿子，她还将为此烦恼多久呢？

2 orphans   

孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
• Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

5 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

6 adoptions   

n.采用，收养( adoption的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Adoption agencies are always so open to alternative family adoptions. 领养中介机构永远都对领养家庭敞开。 来自电影对白
• The number of adoptions has grown in the past year. 去年，收养子女的数字增加了。 来自互联网

7 missionaries   

n.传教士( missionary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some missionaries came from England in the Qing Dynasty. 清朝时，从英国来了一些传教士。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The missionaries rebuked the natives for worshipping images. 传教士指责当地人崇拜偶像。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 siblings   

n.兄弟，姐妹( sibling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A triplet sleeps amongst its two siblings. 一个三胞胎睡在其两个同胞之间。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She has no way of tracking the donor or her half-siblings down. 她没办法找到那个捐精者或她的兄弟姐妹。 来自时文部分

9 orphanages   

孤儿院( orphanage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It is Rotarians running orphanages for children who have no homes. 扶轮社员们为没有家的孩子办孤儿院。
• Through the years, she built churches, hospitals and orphanages. 许多年来，她盖了一间间的教堂、医院、育幼院。

10 orphaned   

[计][修]孤立

参考例句：

• Orphaned children were consigned to institutions. 孤儿都打发到了福利院。
• He was orphaned at an early age. 他幼年时便成了孤儿。