2006年VOA标准英语-Nepal Villagers Trapped in the Middle of C

By Patricia Nunan
Nepal Ganj, Nepal
22 February 2006
 
watch Nepal report

For the past 10 years, Nepal has been caught up in a conflict between government forces and communist rebels fighting to overthrow¹ the monarchy² in the Himalayan country. The Maoist rebellion, as it is known, has been mostly waged in rural areas -- where civilians³ have endured human rights violations⁴ from both sides. VOA's Patricia Nunan traveled to some affected⁵ villages outside the western town of Nepal Ganj and spoke⁶ to some of those caught in the middle. 

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Nepal villager rides past security forces   
  

This is Nepal Ganj, a town in what could be called Nepal's wild west. It's the site of frequent clashes between security forces and Maoist rebels, intent on overthrowing⁷ the Nepal's monarchy.

It's classic guerrilla warfare⁸: Security forces often can’t distinguish between combatants and civilians, and pose a threat to both. The rebels draw support from the local population, and attack those who cross them. 

 
Laxmi Gurung
  
Laxmi Gurung knows all too well how it feels to be stuck between the two sides. Maoist rebels beat her so severely⁹ doctors were forced to amputate one of her arms. The rebels had falsely accused her of being a government informant.

"The government forces rarely ever arrest or kill the actual Maoists -- it's the ordinary people who are affected. And the Maoists are just the same,” she told us.

Despite the fog that often enshrouds these villages, little escapes the attention of the rebels around Nepal Ganj. With permission and a special motorcycle escort, the Maoist leadership will agree to discuss their views. 

 
Political Commissar Athak
  
Political Commissar Athak says the rebels have drawn¹⁰ their philosophy from communist ideals, and molded them to fit modern, multi-party democracy. Their primary goal remains¹¹ simply to overthrow the king, and hold elections.

Throughout the course of the 10-year rebellion, Athak admits, human rights abuses have occurred.  "In war, not everything goes according to plan. This is an uprising, a rebellion, so mistakes have happened. But our party has publicly accepted these mistakes But the direct violations of human rights has been consistently performed by the dictator and his army far more than us. The international community should pay attention to these gross violations of human rights by the state."

 
Moti Lal
  
The government also makes mistakes. Moti Lal runs a small photo shop in a village outside Nepal Ganj. When a police post in his village was attacked by the rebels, police arrested and held him without charge for 14 months -- because he happened to be nearby.

“The police said, ‘Our station is burning down, do you expect us to stand by and let you laugh at us?’ I thought I would be treated well, but police began to beat me immediately,” he said.

In a recent speech, King Gyanendra insisted his forces are winning the fight against the Maoist rebellion. But while the government has an "unflinching" commitment to human rights, he says it's sometimes difficult to uphold those rights, when fighting the rebels, whom he has branded "terrorists."

Villagers like Lal and Gurung have become resigned to the fact that Nepal's conflict will likely continue. All they want is to be left alone.

1 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

2 monarchy   

n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国

参考例句：

• The monarchy in England plays an important role in British culture.英格兰的君主政体在英国文化中起重要作用。
• The power of the monarchy in Britain today is more symbolical than real.今日英国君主的权力多为象徵性的，无甚实际意义。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 overthrowing   

v.打倒，推翻( overthrow的现在分词 )；使终止

参考例句：

• They succeeded in overthrowing the fascist dictatorship. 他们成功推翻了法西斯独裁统治。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I always delight in overthrowing those kinds of schemes. 我一向喜欢戳穿人家的诡计。 来自辞典例句

8 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

9 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

10 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。