Economic crisis, crime dominate CARICOM meeting

 　　KINGSTON, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The global economic crisis and high crime rates afflicting¹ most member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) dominated the group's meeting Monday in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, according to reports reaching here.

　　"Since the financial and economic contagion² of 2008, growth in this region has been strangled. Most of our member states contend on a daily basis with a fiscal³ situation that threatens to overwhelm them," said CARICOM General Secretary Irwin Larocque.

　　"The circumstances which fashioned our approach to integration⁴ have changed, the nature of the challenges which we face has changed, our society has changed. Therefore, so must we," Larocque said at the opening session of the group's 24th Inter-sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government.

　　He blamed CARICOM's economic challenges partly on what is viewed as the adverse⁵ policies of multilateral lending institutions.

　　"The excruciating debt burden is exacerbated⁶ by the policies of the international financial institutions which disqualify many of our member states from concessionary financing because of criteria⁷ inappropriate to our circumstances," he said.

　　"Those criteria are also being considered by other international development partners and, if adopted, could render our development efforts even more challenging," Larocque warned.

　　Additionally, the CARICOM chief said rising crime rates in the region have become an obstacle to economic growth and stability.

　　"Those financial and economic burdens are intensified⁸ by the growing levels of crime in our community, in particular the rise in gun-related violence," he said.

　　Larocque announced that a meeting has been arranged with United States Attorney General Eric Holder⁹ to discuss the crime issue affecting the region with a view of forging a partnership¹⁰ to combat the problem.

　　The CARICOM's intersessional meeting is being hosted by Haiti for the first time in the 40-year history of the group.

1 afflicting   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• Violent crime is only one of the maladies afflicting modern society. 暴力犯罪仅仅是困扰现代社会的严重问题之一。
• Violent crime is only one of the maladies afflicting modern society. 暴力犯罪仅仅是危害社会的弊病之一。

2 contagion   

n.(通过接触的疾病)传染；蔓延

参考例句：

• A contagion of fear swept through the crowd.一种恐惧感在人群中迅速蔓延开。
• The product contagion effect has numerous implications for marketing managers and retailers.产品传染效应对市场营销管理者和零售商都有很多的启示。

3 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

4 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

5 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

6 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

8 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

10 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。