I once had this nightmare: I'm standing in the middle of a deserted field full of land mines. In real life, I love to hike, but every time I want to go on a hike, it makes me nervous. I have this thought in the back of my mind that I might lose a limb.
我曾有過這樣的噩夢: 我站在佈滿地雷的廢棄田野間。 在現實生活中,我喜歡徒步旅行, 但每次我想去徒步旅行就很緊張。 可能會失去肢體的這個想法 在我的腦海裡揮之不去。
This underlying fear started 10 years ago, after I met Mohammed, a cluster bomb survivor of the summer 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War in Lebanon. Mohammed, like so many other survivors all around the world, had to live through the horrifying repercussions of cluster munitions on a daily basis.
這潛在的恐懼感始於十年前, 我遇見受榴霰彈攻擊的倖存者穆罕默德之後, 在以色列和真主黨於2006年夏天 在黎巴嫩的戰事之際。 如同世界各地其他許多 倖存者,穆罕默德 每天都必須過著在榴霰彈的 恐怖陰影下的殘酷生活。
When the one-month conflict started in Lebanon, I was still working at Agence France-Presse in Paris. I remember how I was glued to the screens, anxiously following the news. I wanted to reassure myself that the falling bombs missed my parents' home. When I arrived in Beirut on assignment to cover that war, I was relieved to be united with my family, after they had finally managed to escape southern Lebanon. The day the war was over, I remember seeing this image -- one of blocked roads, of displaced people eagerly rushing south, back to their homes, regardless of what they would find.
在黎巴嫩為期一個月的 軍事衝突爆發後, 當時我還在巴黎的法新社工作。 猶記得我緊盯著電視螢幕, 焦急地追蹤戰事的消息。 我自我安慰: 炸彈並未落在我的父母家。 當我抵達貝魯特去報導那場戰爭時, 很欣慰地和家人團聚, 當時他們終於逃離了黎巴嫩南部。 在戰事結束的那一天, 我牢記著目睹的這個影像: 在一條被封鎖的道路上, 流離失所的人們急切地 向南衝,要回自己的家園, 完全不管會在那裡看到些什麼。
An estimated four million cluster submunitions were spread in Lebanon during the 34-day conflict. Mohammed lost both legs during the last week of the conflict. The fact that he lives a five-minute drive from my parents' home made it easier to follow him through the years. It was now almost 10 years since we first met. I saw the young boy who had to endure physical and emotional trauma. I saw the teenager who tried to offer his friends tattoos, in return for a set fee of five dollars. And I know the young, jobless man who spends hours surfing the Internet trying to meet a girl who might become his girlfriend. His fate and the effects of losing his legs are now his daily reality.
據估計,有四百萬顆榴霰彈 於34天期間落在黎巴嫩。 穆罕默德在軍事衝突的 最後一星期,失去了雙腿。 因他的住處離我父母家 只有五分鐘的車程, 所以我這些年來很容易追蹤他的情況。 從我們第一次見面至今已近十年。 我看到一個不得不忍受 身心創傷的小男孩。 我看到一個 幫朋友紋身 一次賺取五塊錢的的青少年。 我認得這個失業的年輕男子 長時間上網 試圖找個女朋友。 他的命運以及失去的雙腿的後遺症 是他現今每天面對的現實。
Survivors of bomb trauma like Mohammed have to deal with so many details that never occur to us. Who would have imagined that so many daily tasks we do or take for granted, such as going to the beach or even picking up something from the floor, would become sources of stress and anxiety? Well, that's what eventually became of Mohammed, due to his inflexible prosthetic legs.
像穆罕默德這樣的炸傷倖存者 得要處理許多我們 根本不會遇到的細節。 誰會想到 有這麼多我們習以為常的日常瑣事, 例如去海灘,或從地上撿起東西, 會是他們壓力和焦慮的來源? 由於他僵硬的義肢,那是 穆罕默德必須面對的景況。
Ten years ago, I had no clue what a cluster bomb was, nor its horrifying implications. I learned that this indiscriminate weapon was used in so many parts of the world and continues to kill on a regular basis, without distinguishing between a military target or a child. I naively asked myself, "But seriously, who made those weapons? And what for?"
十年前,我根本不知道 榴霰彈是什麼, 也不知道它的可怕。 後來我明白,這種無區別性地攻擊人們的武器 被用於世界許多地區, 並且持續奪取性命, 不區分是軍事目標或是孩子。 我天真地自問, 「到底誰製造這些武器? 用來做什麼?」
Let me explain to you what a cluster bomb is. It's a large canister filled with bomblets. When it's dropped from the air, it opens up in midair to release hundreds of bomblets. They scatter around wide areas and on impact, many fail to explode. Those unexploded ones end up just like landmines -- sitting on the ground, waiting for their next target. If someone steps on them by accident or picks them up, they can explode. These weapons are extremely unpredictable, which makes the threat even bigger. One day, a farmer can work his land without a problem. The next day, he can make fire and burn some branches, and the submunitions close by could be set off because of the heat. The problem is children mistake those bomblets for toys, because they can look like bouncy balls or soda cans.
讓我解釋榴霰彈是什麼。 它是個充滿了小炸彈的大罐子。 當它自空中落下時, 罐子會在半空中打開, 釋出數以百計的小炸彈。 小炸彈散落於廣大的區域, 落地時仍有許多未爆炸。 那些未爆彈就像地雷, 留在地面上, 等待下一個受難者。 如果有人無意中踩到 或撿起來, 它們可能就會爆炸。 因這些武器極為叵測, 使所造成的威脅更大。 某一天,農民可以毫無危險地耕作; 而第二天,他升火燒掉些枯枝, 熱度可能引爆附近的未爆彈。 孩童會誤把未爆彈當作玩具, 這是個大問題, 因它們看起來很像是 彈力球或汽水罐。
Being a documentary photographer, I decided to go back to Lebanon a few months after the conflict ended to meet cluster bomb survivors. And I met a few -- Hussein and Rasha, who both lost a leg to submunitions. Their stories are similar to so many other kids' stories across the world and are a testimony to the horrifying implications of the continuous use of such weapons.
身為紀錄片的攝影師, 在戰事結束後數月, 我決定回黎巴嫩, 與受榴霰彈攻擊的倖存者會面。 我見到的幾人中, 胡笙和瑞夏 各因炸彈失去一條腿。 他們和世界其他各地 孩子們的故事類似, 見證了持續使用這類武器 的恐怖影響。
That's when I met Mohammed, in January 2007. He was 11 years old, and I met him exactly four months after his accident. When I first saw him, he was going through painful physiotherapy to recover from his fresh wounds. Still in shock at such a young age, Mohammed was struggling to get used to his new body. He would even wake up sometimes at night wanting to scratch his lost feet. What drew me closer to his story was my instant realization of the difficulties Mohammed was likely to face in the future -- that what he has been suffering while adjusting to his injury at the age of 11, would increase manyfold.
當我遇到穆罕默德, 時值2007年1月。 他那時十一歲, 恰是爆炸意外後整整4個月。 第一次見到他時, 他正經歷著痛苦的物理治療, 為了讓傷勢恢復。 小小的年紀,仍處在驚恐之中, 穆罕默德掙扎著要適應 他已改變的身體。 甚至有時他在夜裡醒來, 想撓已失去的腳以止癢。 吸引我深入走進他的故事的原因, 是我瞬間幡然醒悟, 穆罕默德在未來 極可能面臨的種種困難, 比起他十一歲身軀 所承受的痛苦和必須的調適, 困難將會成倍地增加。
Even before his disability, Mohammed's life wasn't easy. He was born in the Rashidieh Camp for Palestinian refugees, and this is where he still lives. Lebanon holds some 400,000 Palestinian refugees, and they suffer from discriminatory laws. They're not allowed to work in the public sector or practice certain professions and are denied the right to own property. This is one of the reasons why Mohammed doesn't really regret dropping out of school right after his injury. He said, "What's the point of a university degree when I can't find a job to start with?"
即使在他成殘之前, 穆罕默德的生活並不容易。 他出生於拉希迪赫 的巴勒斯坦難民營, 這也仍是他目前的居所。 黎巴嫩約收容著 四十萬名巴勒斯坦難民, 他們忍受著歧視他們的法令。 他們不被允許在公家機關工作, 不能從事某些行業, 並被剝奪財產權。 那是穆罕默德並不後悔 受傷後輟學的原因之一。 他說:「找不到工作時,即使有個 大學學位,又有什麼意義?」
Cluster bomb use creates a vicious circle of impact on communities, and not only the lives of their victims. Many who get injured by this weapon drop out of school, can't find jobs or even lose their jobs, therefore losing the ability to provide for their families. This is not to mention the continuous physical pain and the experience of feeling isolated. These weapons affect the poorest of the poor. The high medical cost is a burden to the families. They end up relying on humanitarian agencies, which is insufficient and unsustainable, especially when injuries require lifelong support to the injured. Ten years after Mohammed's injury, he is still unable to afford proper prosthetic legs. He's very cautious with his steps, as a couple of falls over the years brought him embarrassment among his friends. He joked that since he doesn't have legs, some days he tries to walk on his hands.
使用榴霰彈對社會造成惡性循環, 影響的不僅是受害者的生活而已。 許多這個武器的受害者輟學, 找不到工作,或失去工作, 失去負擔家計的能力; 遑論持續的身體疼痛, 和精神上的孤立感。 這些武器影響赤貧者尤甚。 高額的醫療費是沉重的家庭負擔。 最終,他們只得仰賴人道援助機構, 這些機構資源不足,且不能持續太久, 尤其當傷者倚賴終身支援時。 穆罕默德受傷十年後, 仍然負擔不起換裝合適的義肢的錢。 他小心行進, 因過去數年間的幾次當眾跌倒, 使得他在朋友間非常困窘。 他開玩笑說,因為沒有腿, 有些時候他試圖用手走路。
One of the worst yet invisible impacts of the weapon is the psychological scars it leaves. In one of Mohammed's early medical reports, he was diagnosed with signs of PTSD. He suffered from anxiety, poor appetite, sleep disturbance and showed signs of anger. The reality is Mohammed never received proper help to fully recover. His current obsession is to leave Lebanon at any cost -- even if it meant embarking on a hazardous journey along with refugees drifting towards Europe today through the Mediterranean. Knowing how risky such a journey would be, he said, "If I were to die on the way, it doesn't matter." To Mohammed, he is dead here, anyway.
最糟糕卻又無形的武器後遺症之一, 是留在心裡的創傷。 一份穆罕默德早期 醫療報告的診斷記載著他有 「創傷後壓力症候群 」的跡象。 他焦慮、食慾不振、有睡眠障礙, 並出現憤怒的跡象。 現實的情況是穆罕默德從未得到 能夠讓他完全復原的適切幫助。 他目前執著於不惜一切代價 要離開黎巴嫩, 即使這意味著開始一段危險的旅程, 如同今日經由地中海 漂流至歐洲的難民一般。 知道旅程的危險程度, 他說:「即使我在路上死了 也沒關係。」 穆罕默德認為, 反正他在這裡形同已死。
Cluster bombs are a world problem, as this munition keeps destroying and hurting whole communities for generations to come. In an online interview with the director of the Mines Advisory Group, Jamie Franklin, he said, "The US forces dropped over two million tons of munitions over Laos. If they couldn't find their targets in Vietnam, there were free-drop areas in Laos where planes would drop their loads before going back to base, because it's dangerous to land with loaded planes." According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, in Laos alone -- one of the poorest countries in the world -- nine to 27 million unexploded submunitions remain. Some 11,000 people have been killed or injured since 1973. This lethal weapon has been used by over 20 states during armed conflicts in over 35 countries, such as Ukraine, Iraq and Sudan.
榴霰彈是個世界性的問題, 因這炸彈持續摧毀和傷害整個社會, 禍延後代子孫。 某次線上訪談非營利的 排雷諮詢組織的領導, 傑米•富蘭克林, 他說: 「美軍曾在寮國投下 超過兩百萬噸的炸藥。 如果找不到要攻擊的越南目標, 他們會先把所載的炸彈 丟在位於寮國的拋棄區內, 飛機才返回基地, 因為飛機載著炸彈降落極為危險。」 根據國際紅十字委員會, 僅在世界最貧困的國家之一的寮國, 就留有九百萬至 兩千七百萬枚的未爆彈。 自1973年以來,約有 一萬一千人被炸死或炸傷。 這種致命的武器被使用於 超過二十個武裝衝突的地區, 在烏克蘭、伊拉克和蘇丹等 35個以上的國家裡被使用。
So far, 119 states have joined an international treaty banning cluster bombs, which is officially called the Convention on Cluster Munitions. But some of the biggest producers of cluster munitions -- namely, the United States, Russia and China -- remain outside of this lifesaving treaty and continue to produce them, reserve the right to produce them in the future, keep those harmful weapons in their stockpiles and even possibly use them in the future.
到目前為止,有119個國家 簽署國際條約 禁止榴霰彈, 正式名稱是《榴霰彈公約》。 但一些最大的榴霰彈生產商, 即:美國、俄羅斯,和中國, 仍把這拯救生命的公約排除在外, 繼續製造榴霰彈, 保留對榴霰彈未來的生產權, 庫存著這些有害的武器, 且很可能將來還會使用它們。
Cluster bombs have reportedly been used most recently in the ongoing conflicts in Yemen and Syria. According to research on the worldwide investments in cluster munitions producers by Pax, a Dutch-based NGO, financial institutions invested billions of US dollars into companies that make cluster munitions. The majority of these institutions are based in countries that have not yet signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
據報導,最近榴霰彈被用於 持續進行的葉門和敘利亞衝突中。 根據位於荷蘭的非營利、 非政府組織PAX的一項研究, 金融機構投資數十億美元 在全世界的榴霰彈生產商上。 其中大多數金融機構的總部 位於尚未簽署《榴霰彈公約》的國家內。
Getting back to Mohammed, one of the few jobs he was able to find was picking lemons. When I ask him if it's safe to work in the field he said, "I'm not sure." Research shows that cluster munitions often contaminate areas where agriculture is the main source of income. According to Handicap International's research, 98 percent of those killed or injured by cluster munitions are civilians. Eighty-four percent of casualties are males. In countries where these people have no choice but to work in those fields, they simply do it and risk it.
回到穆罕默德, 他能夠找到的少數工作之一 是採摘檸檬。 我問他在田地裡工作是否安全, 他回答:「我不確定。」 研究顯示,在榴霰彈殘留的地區, 通常以農業為其主要的收入來源。 根據「國際殘疾協會」的研究, 百分之九十八的 榴霰彈死傷者是平民; 百分之八十四是男性。 在一些別無其他選擇, 只能在田野裡工作的國家, 人們只能冒險工作。
Mohammed is the only male to three sisters. Culturally, he's expected to provide for his family, but he simply can't. He tried to have so many different jobs, but he couldn't keep any due to his physical disability and the less-than-friendly environment to people with disabilities, to say the least. It hurts him a lot when he goes out looking for a job, and he's turned away with a small amount of money paid to him out of pity. He said, "I'm not here to beg for money, I just want to earn it."
和三個姐妹在一起, 穆罕默德作為家中唯一的男人, 在習俗期許下, 他應該負擔家人的生計, 但他根本無法辦到。 他試過許多不同的工作, 但沒一個能夠長久, 主因是他身體的殘疾,以及 身處於對殘疾人不友善的環境中。 對他的巨大打擊和傷害 是他去找工作時被拒絕, 而用一點點的憐憫小錢 打發他走。 他說:「我不是在乞討, 我只是想靠自己賺錢。」
Mohammed today is 21 years old. He's illiterate, and he communicates with voice messages. Here is one of his messages.
穆罕默德現年二十一歲。 是個文盲, 靠語音訊息溝通。 這是他的一段語音。
(Audio) Mohammed: (Speaking in Arabic)
(穆罕默德的阿拉伯語音頻)
Laura Boushnak: He said, "My dream is to run, and I'm pretty sure once I start running, I would never stop."
(蘿拉•包士拿克:) 他說:「我的夢,是奔跑。 我萬分肯定,一旦起跑, 就永遠不會停下腳步。」
Thank you.
謝謝。
(Applause)
(掌聲)