? ? ?People of some twenty-six different nationalities were detained in?the camp and formed a very colourful community indeed. Several?enterprising people had opened little restaurants and coffee shops so?that, when one entered some of the huts, one had the impression of being?in an Eastern bazaar. A brisk black-market trade flourished in?foodstuffs and other commodities. These reached the camp in two?ways: through the embassies of the wealthier nations which sent?parcels for their nationals and through people who had money and?could purchase things outside the camp. The largest national?contingent were the Poles who formed a closed and well-disciplined?community. In many ways they ran the camp for they had been there?the longest. The stronger nations could bring some pressure to bear?on the Spanish government to release their citizens. The weaker?nations could not.

【大約有26個不同國家的人被拘留在該營地，這形成了一個非常豐富多彩的社區(qū)。幾個有想法的人開了小餐館和咖啡館，因此，當你走進一些茅屋時，你會有一種置身集市的感覺。活躍的黑市交易補充了食品和其他商品的買賣。這些物資通過兩種方式到達營地:一種是通過富裕國家的大使館，大使館為他們的國民寄包裹，另一種是通過有錢的人，他們可以在營地外面買東西。最大的隊伍是波蘭人，他們組成了一個封閉和紀律良好的社區(qū)。他們在許多方面管理著這個營地，因為他們在那里待的時間最長。國力較強的國家可以向西班牙政府施加一些壓力，要求釋放本國公民。較弱的國家則不能?！?/span>

? ? ?In the middle of January 1943, when I had been nearly two months in?the camp, the lingering discontent and bitterness against the?Spanish authorities, who kept the refugees indefinitely in the most?squalid conditions, burst into open resistance. The movement started?among the Poles and spread rapidly to the other nationalities. It was?decided that we should all go on a hunger strike. This, it was hoped,?would alert the international community to our plight and force the?Spanish authorities to change their release policy and improve?conditions in the camp.

【1943年1月中旬，我在集中營待了將近兩個月，西班牙當局無限期地把難民關(guān)在最骯臟的條件下，人們對西班牙當局的不滿和怨恨爆發(fā)了公開的反抗。這場運動始于波蘭人，并迅速蔓延到其他民族。我們大家都決定進行絕食抗議。希望這將使國際社會注意到我們的困境，并迫使西班牙當局改變其釋放政策，改善難民營的條件。】

? ? ?The strike lasted a whole week. It was organised by the Poles, who?formed the pickets and made sure that nobody accepted any food. To?demonstrate that the strike was in earnest, the national representatives?were not allowed to distribute any food to their nationals and all?purchases outside the camp were stopped. Anyone who broke the?strike ran the risk of a nasty beating-up at the hands of a gang of tough?Poles. Already after the first few days, the camp administration began?to try to lure the inmates back to eating by improving the daily fare.?We were ordered to queue up and walk past the pots, even if we?refused any food.

【抗議持續(xù)了整整一個星期。這是由波蘭人組織的，他們組成糾察隊，確保沒有人接受任何食物。為了表明抗議是認真的，不允許國民代表向他們的國民分發(fā)任何食物，并禁止在營地以外購買任何東西。任何破壞抗議的人都有被一伙強硬的波蘭人毒打的危險。在最初幾天之后，集中營管理部門就開始通過改善日?；锸硜硪T囚犯重新吃飯。即使我們拒絕任何食物，我們也要排隊，從鍋邊走過?！?/span>

? ? ?Exactly a week after the strike had started, a four-member team of?the diplomatic corps, among whom was a British diplomat, visited the?camp and talked with the strike committee. They advised the inmates?to start eating again as they had received assurances from the Spanish?authorities that conditions in the camp would be improved and?releases speeded up. This was accepted.

【抗議開始一周后，包括一名英國外交官在內(nèi)的4名外交使團訪問了營地，并與抗議委員會進行了交談。他們建議囚犯重新開始進食，因為西班牙當局向他們保證，集中營的條件將得到改善，釋放速度將加快。這是得到保證的?！?/span>

? ? ?I cannot say that I felt the worse for this experience. In the?beginning I suffered from headaches, but after a few days my?body seemed to get used to doing without food. The feeling of?hunger disappeared and gave way to a strange feeling of elation,?lightness and energy. I found this so pleasant that in later life I have?frequently practised fasting for some days in order to recapture this?feeling of euphoria. One result is that I can easily skip several meals, if?circumstances require this, without experiencing any inconvenience.

【我不能說這段經(jīng)歷讓我感覺更糟。起初我頭痛，但幾天后我的身體似乎習慣了不吃東西。饑餓感消失了，取而代之的是一種奇怪的興高采烈、輕松愉快和精力充沛的感覺。我發(fā)現(xiàn)這是如此令人愉快，以至于在以后的生活中，我經(jīng)常齋戒幾天，以重新獲得這種愉悅的感覺。由此帶來的一個好處是，如果情況需要，我可以很容易地跳過幾頓飯，而不會遇到任何不便。】

? ? ?A few days after the strike ended, I and several others were?suddenly released. I don't know on what basis the group of about?fifteen inmates was formed. All I know is that a young Dutchman and?myself were included because we were minors. A man from the British?Embassy came to collect us and took us by train to Madrid. There we were?put up in a hotel which we were not allowed to leave. Two days?later, we boarded a train for Gibraltar, escorted by two members of?the British Embassy. We arrived at La Linea the next afternoon.?A few short formalities at the Spanish customs post and the barrier?was lifted. We walked through to the other side. Here British soldiers?were standing guard and we were met by blue-uniformed policemen.?I had reached my destination. I stood on British territory.

【抗議結(jié)束幾天后，我和其他幾個人突然被釋放了。我不知道這個由15名囚犯組成的小組是根據(jù)什么成立的。我所知道的是一個年輕的荷蘭人和我是因為未成年人。英國大使館的一個人來接我們，把我們送上去馬德里的火車。在那里，我們被安排在一家旅館里，不準離開。兩天后，我們在兩名英國大使館人員的護送下登上了開往直布羅陀的火車。第二天下午，我們到達了拉利尼亞。在西班牙海關(guān)處辦理了幾項簡短的手續(xù)，限制就被解除了。我們走到另一邊。這里有英國士兵站崗，我們遇到了身穿藍色制服的警察。我到達了目的地。我站在英國的領(lǐng)土上?！?/span>

? ? ?Waiting buses took us straight to the quayside where naval launches?transferred us to a passenger liner, the Empress of Australia, lying?with a great number and variety of other ships at anchor in the?roadstead. A convoy had been formed and would leave in a few hours?for England. The voyage was uneventful, though the tension, created?by the lurking danger of U-boats and enemy aircraft, never quite?left us.

【公共汽車把我們直接帶到碼頭，海軍的汽艇把我們送到一艘客輪——澳大利亞女皇號上，這艘客輪和許多其他船只停泊在錨地。船隊已經(jīng)組成，幾小時后將啟程前往英國。這次航行平安無事，但潛艇和敵機的潛伏危險所造成的緊張氣氛一直沒有離開我們?！?/span>

? ? ?As soon as the ship was alongside in Greenock, immigration officers?came on board. We had to queue up and were questioned in turn.?I showed them my travel document and told them that my mother and?sisters were living in England, but I did not know where. Later in the?day, we were taken by train to London under an escort of soldiers.?From King's Cross station buses took us to a place called the 'Royal?Victorian Patriotic School'. This name rather baffled me. I imagined?it to be some kind of special school where one attended lessons in?patriotism and if one passed the examination, one was released. I was?wrong, of course, but not all that much for the school was an?interrogation centre for refugees, the purpose of which was to weed?out German spies and other security risks. The name had nothing to?do with the centre, but was that of a requisitioned girls' school on the?premises.

【船一靠近格林諾克，移民官員就上了船。我們不得不排隊，挨個接受審問。我給他們看了我的旅行證件，并告訴他們我的母親和姐妹們住在英國，但我不知道在哪里。當天晚些時候，我們在士兵的護送下乘火車去了倫敦。我們從國王十字車站乘車來到一個叫“皇家維多利亞愛國學校”的地方。這個名字使我莫名其妙。我把它想象成一所特殊的學校，在那里上愛國主義課，通過考試就可以獲釋。當然，我錯了，但這所學校并不是一個難民審訊中心，其目的是清除德國間諜和其他安全隱患。這個名字與中心沒有任何關(guān)系，它只是征用了女子學校的所在地?！?/span>

? ? ?After a few days there, I was called up for interrogation. It was?conducted by a sharp-featured, dark, young captain in the Intelligence?Corps whose manner was polite, but distant. I told him my life story?and, especially, the details of my escape from occupied territory.?He took everything down in longhand and, as he frequently interrupted?to ask probing questions, it took two full days before I had?finished. On the third day, he called me again and went over certain?parts of my story which needed elucidation. I repeated everything in a?straightforward way, exactly as it had been.

【在那里呆了幾天后，我被叫去接受審問。指揮這次行動的是情報部隊的一名年輕上尉，他相貌鮮明，膚色黝黑，彬彬有禮，但態(tài)度冷淡。我告訴他我的生活經(jīng)歷，特別是我逃離被占領(lǐng)土的細節(jié)。他用手寫的方式記下了所有的東西，由于他經(jīng)常打斷我，問一些試探性的問題，他花了整整兩天時間才把它寫完。第三天，他又打電話給我，把我故事中需要解釋的部分講了一遍。我直截了當?shù)刂貜?fù)了所有的事情，完全照舊?！?/span>

? ? ?The following day I was not called for by him. In the afternoon?there was a film show, 'The Dictator' with Charlie Chaplin, but I?never saw it. The film had just started when I was called out to see the?CO of the establishment. A tall, grey-haired colonel told me that he?had succeeded in locating my mother and that I would be allowed to?go. He then picked up the telephone and dialed?a number. At the?other end my mother answered. He told her she was speaking to an?immigration officer and asked her if she had a son in Holland. She?confirmed this and he then asked her to give a short description.?Satisfied, he said, 'Well, I have good news for you. He is here with me?now and I'll hand the receiver to him so that you can speak to him?yourself.'

【第二天他沒有找我。下午有一場查理·卓別林演的電影《獨裁者》，但我沒看。電影剛開始，我就被叫去見相關(guān)的主管。一位高個、頭發(fā)灰白的上校告訴我，他已經(jīng)找到了我母親，我可以去了。然后他拿起電話，撥了一個號碼。在電話的另一端，母親接起了電話。他告訴她，她正在和一位移民官員交談，問她是否在荷蘭有個兒子。她證實了這一點，然后他請她做一個簡短的描述。他很滿意，說:‘好吧，我有好消息告訴你。他現(xiàn)在和我在一起，我把聽筒交給他，這樣你就可以親自跟他說了?！薄?/span>

? ? ?I don't remember what we said to each other, but the outcome was?that she would meet me in an hour's time on the platform of the?station in Northwood, where she lived. The colonel then gave me half?a crown for the fare and shook hands. I was free to go. An hour later,?after several changes and much asking, I got out at Northwood?station. It was dark and raining, but at the end of the platform?I recognised at once the waiting figure of my mother. I was home.

【我不記得我們說了什么，但結(jié)果是，一小時后她將在她住的諾斯伍德車站的月臺上和我見面。然后上校給了我半個克朗作為車費，并和我握手。我可以走了。一個小時后，我換了幾次車，問了好幾次路，終于在諾斯伍德站下車了。天很黑，下著雨，但在月臺的盡頭，我立刻認出了等待著的母親的身影。我回家了?！?/span>