Barat Ali Batoor: My desperate journey with a human smuggler

譯者: Marssi Draw 審譯者: Regina Chu

I am a Hazara,

我是哈扎拉人，

and the homeland of my people is Afghanistan.

我們的家鄉是阿富汗。

Like hundreds of thousands of other Hazara kids,

就像上萬個哈扎拉孩子一樣，

I was born in exile.

我在流亡時誕生。

The ongoing persecution and operation against the Hazaras

針對哈扎拉人不斷的迫害和征戰，

forced my parents to leave Afghanistan.

讓我的父母不得不離開阿富汗。

This persecution has had a long history going back to the late 1800s,

這場迫害歷史悠久，溯及十九世紀末，

and the rule of King Abdur Rahman.

阿布杜爾．拉赫曼汗國王的政權。

He killed 63 percent of the Hazara population.

他殺了 63% 的哈扎拉人，

He built minarets with their heads.

用他們的頭顱建造宣禮塔。

Many Hazaras were sold into slavery,

許多哈扎拉人被賣去當奴隸，

and many others fled the country for neighboring Iran and Pakistan.

有些人逃到鄰國伊朗或巴基斯坦。

我父母也逃到巴基斯坦，

My parents also fled to Pakistan,

and settled in Quetta, where I was born.

在奎塔安頓下來，我也在那出生。

After the September 11 attack on the Twin Towers,

911 雙子星大樓攻擊事件之後，

I got a chance to go to Afghanistan

我有機會前往阿富汗，

for the first time, with foreign journalists.

那是我的第一次，和外籍記者同行。

I was only 18, and I got a job working as an interpreter.

我才 18 歲就擔任口譯人員。

After four years,

四年後，

I felt it was safe enough to move to Afghanistan permanently,

我覺得阿富汗已經夠安全 能夠搬回去定居了，

and I was working there as a documentary photographer,

我在那裡擔任紀實攝影師，

and I worked on many stories.

拍攝很多故事。

One of the most important stories that I did

其中非常重要的一個故事

was the dancing boys of Afghanistan.

就是阿富汗跳舞的男孩。

這個悲劇講述一項駭人的傳統。

It is a tragic story about an appalling tradition.

It involves young kids dancing for warlords

故事包括了小男孩跳舞給軍閥

and powerful men in the society.

和社會上有權勢的男性看。

These boys are often abducted or bought from their poor parents,

這些男孩通常是被綁架， 或從窮困家長那買來的，

and they are put to work as sex slaves.

他們被迫做性奴隸。

This is Shukur.

這是蘇卡爾，

He was kidnapped from Kabul by a warlord.

他是軍閥從喀布爾綁來的。

He was taken to another province,

他被帶到另一個省，

where he was forced to work as a sex slave for the warlord and his friends.

被迫當軍閥本人和朋友的性奴隸。

When this story was published in the Washington Post,

這則故事在華盛頓郵報上報導後，

I started receiving death threats,

我開始收到死亡威脅，

and I was forced to leave Afghanistan,

被迫離開阿富汗，

as my parents were.

就像我父母過去那樣。

Along with my family, I returned back to Quetta.

我和父母回到奎達。

The situation in Quetta had changed dramatically since I left in 2005.

奎達的情況在我 2005 年離開後 已經大幅改變。

Once a peaceful haven for the Hazaras,

這裡曾是哈扎拉人的和平避風港，

it had now turned into the most dangerous city in Pakistan.

現在卻變成巴基斯坦最危險的城市。

Hazaras are confined into two small areas,

哈扎拉人被限制在兩個小區域裡，

and they are marginalized socially, educationally, and financially.

他們在社會、教育上被排擠、懲罰。

This is Nadir.

這是那迪爾，

I had known him since my childhood.

我小時候就認識他了。

He was injured when his van was ambushed by terrorists in Quetta.

他會受傷是因為 恐怖分子在奎達攻擊他的貨車，

He later died of his injuries.

不久後他就傷重不治。

Around 1,600 Hazara members

大約有 1,600 名哈扎拉族人

had been killed in various attacks,

在各種攻擊中喪命；

and around 3,000 of them were injured,

約有 3,000 人受傷，

and many of them permanently disabled.

其中很多人都因此終生殘廢。

The attacks on the Hazara community would only get worse,

對哈扎拉族的攻擊只會越演越烈，

so it was not surprising that many wanted to flee.

因此很多人想流亡並不讓人意外。

After Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan,

繼阿富汗、伊朗、巴基斯坦之後，

Australia is home to the fourth largest population of Hazaras in the world.

澳洲是世界上哈扎拉 人口第四多的家園。

When it came time to leave Pakistan,

提到離開巴基斯坦，

Australia seemed the obvious choice.

澳洲似乎是無庸置疑的選擇。

Financially, only one of us could leave,

我們的經濟情況只容許一人離開，

and it was decided that I would go,

最後決定讓我走，

in the hope that if I arrived at my destination safely,

希望我安全抵達目的地之後

I could work to get the rest of my family to join me later.

能設法讓全家團圓。

We all knew about the risks,

我們都知道風險，

and how terrifying the journey is,

這趟路有多恐怖，

and I met many people who lost loved ones at sea.

我碰到很多人在海上失去摯愛。

It was a desperate decision to take, to leave everything behind,

這是鋌而走險的選擇， 要放下一切離開，

and no one makes this decision easily.

沒人能輕鬆做這個決定。

If I had been able to simply fly to Australia,

如果我只是買張機票飛到澳洲，

it would have taken me less than 24 hours.

花的時間不用 24 小時。

But getting a visa was impossible.

但是要拿到簽證根本是不可能的事。

My journey was much longer,

我的路途更長、

much more complicated,

更複雜，

and certainly more dangerous,

而且無疑更危險，

traveling to Thailand by air,

搭飛機到泰國、

and then by road and boat to Malaysia and into Indonesia,

走陸路和搭船到馬來西亞和印尼，

paying people and smugglers all the way

一路付錢給人和蛇頭，

and spending a lot of time hiding

花很多時間躲藏，

and a lot of time in fear of being caught.

還有很多時間害怕被抓到。

In Indonesia, I joined a group of seven asylum seekers.

我在印尼加入七位尋求政治庇護者。

We all shared a bedroom

我們共用一間房間，

in a town outside of Jakarta called Bogor.

在雅加達外的小鎮，茂物。

After spending a week in Bogor,

在茂物待了一個星期之後，

three of my roommates left for the perilous journey,

我的三位室友開始亡命之旅，

and we got the news two days later

兩天後我們聽說

that a distressed boat sank in the sea en route to Christmas Island.

一艘破船在去聖誕島的途中沉了。

We found out that our three roommates -- Nawroz, Jaffar and Shabbir --

我們發現自己的三位室友 ──那若茲、賈法、沙畢──

were also among those.

也身在其中。

Only Jaffar was rescued.

只有賈法獲救。

Shabbir and Nawroz were never seen again.

沙畢和那若茲就此失去蹤影。

It made me think,

這讓我思考

am I doing the right thing?

自己是在做對的事情嗎？

I concluded I really had no other choice but to go on.

我認定自己別無選擇， 只能繼續下去。

A few weeks later, we got the call from the people smuggler

幾週後，我們接到蛇頭的電話，

to alert us that the boat is ready for us to commence our sea journey.

通知我們船已經備好， 可以展開海上旅途了。

Taken in the night towards the main vessel

我們在夜裡被帶上運往大船的汽艇，

on a motorboat,

we boarded an old fishing boat that was already overloaded.

搭上老舊超載的漁船。

There were 93 of us,

總共有 93 個人，

and we were all below deck.

我們全都在甲板下。

No one was allowed up on the top.

沒人可以待在甲板上。

We all paid 6,000 dollars each

每個人都花了六千美元

for this part of the trip.

走這段路。

The first night and day went smoothly,

第一晚和白天風平浪靜，

but by the second night, the weather turned.

但是第二晚天氣變了。

Waves tossed the boat around, and the timbers groaned.

浪把船打得翻來覆去， 木頭嘎嘎作響。

People below deck were crying, praying, recalling their loved ones.

大家在甲板下哭泣、祈禱、 思念摯愛的親友。

They were screaming.

他們尖叫。

It was a terrible moment.

這一刻非常嚇人。

It was like a scene from doomsday,

就像世界末日的場景，

or maybe like one of those scenes from those Hollywood movies

或是說就像好來塢電影上的情節，

that shows that everything is breaking apart

裡面的東西全都破裂四散，

and the world is just ending.

世界就此停止。

It was happening to us for real.

這件事確實發生在我們身上，

We didn't have any hope.

大家都已經絕望了。

Our boat was floating like a matchbox on the water

我們的船就像火柴盒一樣在水上漂，

without any control.

失去控制。

The waves were much higher than our boat,

波浪打得比船還高，

and the water poured in faster than the motor pumps could take it out.

海水灌進來的速度快到 電動幫浦來不及抽水。

We all lost hope.

我們失去希望，

We thought, this is the end.

心想一切都要結束了。

We were watching our deaths,

我們直視著自己的死亡，

and I was documenting it.

我紀錄這一切。

The captain told us

船長告訴大家，

that we are not going to make it,

我們撐不下去，

we have to turn back the boat.

必須折返了。

We went on the deck

我們站上甲板，

and turned our torches on and off

開關手電筒

to attract the attention of any passing boat.

吸引路過的般隻注意。

We kept trying to attract their attention by waving our life jackets and whistling.

我們為了吸引注意， 不斷揮動救生衣和吹哨子。

Eventually, we made it to a small island.

最後我們終於在小島靠岸。

Our boat crashing onto the rocks,

船撞上岩石，

I slipped into the water

我滑進水裡，

and destroyed my camera, whatever I had documented.

弄壞了相機，我所紀錄的一切。

But luckily, the memory card survived.

幸運的是記憶卡倖存了。

It was a thick forest.

那是一座茂密的森林，

We all split up into many groups as we argued over what to do next.

我們幾組人意見分歧， 吵著接下來要怎麼做。

We were all scared and confused.

大家都嚇壞了、不知所措。

Then, after spending the night on the beach,

在海灘上待了一晚之後，

we found a jetty and coconuts.

我們發現防波堤和椰子，

We hailed a boat from a nearby resort,

從附近的渡假村喚來一艘船，

and then were quickly handed over to Indonesian water police.

然後馬上被交到印尼水上警察手上。

At Serang Detention Center,

我們在西冷拘留所的時候，

an immigration officer came and furtively strip-searched us.

一位移民署官員進來 對我們徹底搜身。

He took our mobile, my $300 cash,

他拿走我們的行動電話、 我的三百美元現金、我們的鞋子，

our shoes that we should not be able to escape,

確保我們無法逃跑。

but we kept watching the guards, checking their movements,

但是我們一直注意著警衛， 確認他們的一舉一動，

and around 4 a.m. when they sat around a fire,

清晨四點左右，他們圍坐在火堆旁，

we removed two glass layers from an outside facing window

我們從外面的防護窗上 移開雙層玻璃，

and slipped through.

然後偷跑出去。

We climbed a tree next to an outer wall that was topped with the shards of glass.

我們爬上外牆旁的一棵樹上， 牆上都是碎玻璃。

We put the pillow on that

我們放上枕頭，

and wrapped our forearms with bedsheets

用床單纏住前臂，

and climbed the wall,

爬上牆，

and we ran away with bare feet.

光著腳逃跑。

I was free,

我自由了，

with an uncertain future,

帶著不確定的未來，

no money.

身無分文。

The only thing I had was the memory card with the pictures and footage.

我唯一有的就是記憶卡， 裡面存了照片和影片。

When my documentary was aired on SBS Dateline,

我的記錄影片在澳洲公共電視台 《國際換日線》節目播出後，

many of my friends came to know about my situation,

很多朋友知道我的情況

and they tried to help me.

試圖要來幫我。

They did not allow me to take any other boat to risk my life.

他們不准我再冒著 生命危險搭上任何船。

I also decided to stay in Indonesia and process my case through UNHCR,

我也決定留在印尼， 透過聯合國難民署處理，

but I was really afraid that I would end up in Indonesia

但我真的很怕自己最後會在印尼

for many years doing nothing and unable to work,

待很多年還一事無成，而且不能工作，

like every other asylum seeker.

就像其他尋求政治庇護者一樣。

But it had happened to be a little bit different with me.

但是我的遭遇卻不太一樣。

I was lucky.

我當時很幸運。

My contacts worked to expedite my case through UNHCR,

我透過門路讓聯合國難民署 加速處理我的案件，

and I got resettled in Australia in May 2013.

2013 年五月我被重新安置在澳洲。

Not every asylum seeker is lucky like me.

不是每個尋求政治庇護者 都和我一樣幸運。

It is really difficult to live a life with an uncertain fate, in limbo.

命運懸在半空中的情況下 要過日子是非常困難的事。

The issue of asylum seekers in Australia

澳洲的尋求政治庇護者議題

has been so extremely politicized

已經被過度政治化

that it has lost its human face.

到失去人道的地步。

The asylum seekers have been demonized and then presented to the people.

尋求政治庇護者被妖魔化後 才呈現在人民眼前。

I hope my story and the story of other Hazaras

我希望我的故事 和其他哈扎拉人的故事

could shed some light to show the people

能夠點燃一盞明燈，讓世人看見

how these people are suffering in their countries of origin,

這些人在原生國受苦的模樣、

and how they suffer,

他們的經歷，

why they risk their lives to seek asylum.

以及他們為什麼要 冒著生命危險尋求庇護。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）