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| Words in the News
Wednesday 19 December 2001
Vocabulary from the news. Listen to and read the report then find explanations of difficult words below.
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International migration of Afghans
Summary: Afghans remain the world's largest refugee community, with many millions sheltering in Pakistan, Iran, Russia and the Central Asian republics. Many more have travelled to the West either as asylum seekers or as illegal immigrants seeking employment. This report from Pam O'Toole:
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| | The News | |
| | | The collapse of the Taleban has led to renewed optimism among Afghan exiles around the world. The number of Afghan refugees repatriating from neighbouring countries is rising--the UN refugee agency says more than 33,000 Afghans returned from Iran over the past month.
It's not clear how many of these people are returning permanently. Some may be visiting home for the Eid celebrations, or testing the water before deciding their next move. But if large numbers were to begin leaving Iran, their absence would be noted. While the Iranian media accuses Afghan refugees and migrants of taking jobs away from Iranians, others point out that Afghans often do poorly paid jobs that Iranians don't want. Afghan workers, they say, could be hard to replace.
Afghans in the West are also watching the situation closely, gratified by the new international interest in their country. Some exiled businessmen are talking eagerly of going home, or of investing in Afghanistan. The United Nations is hoping that educated Afghans will return from abroad to aid Afghanistan's reconstruction effort and a number of exiles are included in Afghanistan's new interim administration.
Pam O'Toole, BBC
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| | The Words
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| | | renewed optimism
the return of a hopeful feeling
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| | | exiles
people who are forced to live outside their own country
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| | | repatriating
the process of refugees returning home
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| | | the Eid celebrations
festival to mark the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan
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| | | testing the water
trying to see if something is possible
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| | | refugees
people who are forced to leave their country, usually due to war, or political belief
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| | | migrants
people who move from place to place, often to find work
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| | | poorly paid jobs
work or labour that earns very little
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| | | gratified by
satisfied and pleased by
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| | | interim administration
the government in the transition period
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