Immigrants found in a container
(Level: Upper-Intermediate / B2 to C1 / ***)

Thirty-five immigrants believed to be from India and the victims of people traffickers were found inside a shipping container in Tilbury. One man died while others were suffering from dehydration and hypothermia. 

It is a fact now that the number of people smuggling into Europe, particularly in summer, is on the rise. And this new tragedy clearly shows how big an issue human trafficking is.

You are going to watch a Sky News report focusing on the issue.

Illustration credit: dailymail.com
Click on the picture to make it bigger!

Tilbury
Map credit: roxhill.co.uk

Before watching:


The following words could be useful:
to smuggle:  to convey (someone / something) secretly and illicitly        passer / introduire (quelque chose / quelqu'un) illégalement...  
commodities: goods; products        produits / denrées / marchandises
soft-sided (versus hard-sided): e.g. for a lorry of which the sides are not hard        parois (latérales) souples   

A soft-sided lorry
Photo credit: metro.co.uk

a rough sea  (versus a smooth sea):  turbulent         une mer agitée  
to capsize: (of a boat)  to turn over       chavirer   
ought to... = should
random: without a particular plan or pattern     aléatoire
to trick someone into...:   to fool; deceive       inciter à...  (par la ruse) ; piéger; 
to be enslaved:  to be reduced to slavery              être réduit à l'esclavage; être asservi 
an issue: a matter of discussion; debate; a problem    une problématique; un problème; une question  

Lampedusa
Map credit: en.wikipedia.org

While watching:


Answer the questions in the chart in French:

You can also watch the video on the Sky News site by clicking HERE.








When you are finished, you can check your answers:

If you are interested, you can also watch a report posted on 15 June 2014:  click HERE