2006年VOA标准英语-Indonesian President calls for Tolerance,

By Nancy-Amelia Collins
Jakarta
10 April 2006

Indonesia's president is calling for Asia-Pacific nations to combat ethnic¹ and religious violence. The 62nd U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific is being held in Jakarta.

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Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono delivers speech during opening ceremony of UNESCAP ministerial meeting  
  

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told 600 delegates from more than 60 countries at the U.N. conference that Asia-Pacific nations must focus on solving emerging issues of ethnic and religious violence.

"Development in the 21st century is also about tolerance² building," he said. "UNESCAP can help communities in this region achieve the kind of social progress that make them a bastion of resilience and tolerance, where diversity is celebrated³ as a source of strength and dynamism."

Indonesia, a secular⁴ nation with the world's largest Muslims population, has been rocked by ethnic and religious violence during the past several years. Muslims and Christians⁵ have battled in Sulawesi, and Muslim terrorists have set off bombs on the predominately Hindu island of Bali.

There has also been inter-ethnic violence between Muslims and Buddhists⁶ in Southern Thailand during the past two years, and on-going unrest among the Philippines' Muslim minority.

Mr. Yudhoyono also said countries in the region must focus on good governance as a way to promote development and eradicate⁷ poverty.

"There is one critical lesson that stands out from the past decades: the key to progress lies in good governance," he said. "I would even venture to say that this is a universal lesson that applies to any society, regardless of ideology⁸, political system, economic size, history, and culture."

The UNESCAP meeting is expected to focus on regional cooperation in dealing⁹ with natural disasters, eradicating¹⁰ poverty, and globalization.

Delegates will also discuss trade liberalization and the threat of a bird flu pandemic.

1 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

2 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

3 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

4 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

5 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

6 Buddhists   

n.佛教徒( Buddhist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Jesuits in a phase of ascendancy, persecuted and insulted the Buddhists with great acrimony. 处于地位上升阶段的耶稣会修士迫害佛教徒，用尖刻的语言辱骂他们。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The return of Saivite rule to central Java had brought no antagonism between Buddhists and Hindus. 湿婆教在中爪哇恢复统治后，并没有导致佛教徒与印度教徒之间的对立。 来自辞典例句

7 eradicate   

v.根除，消灭，杜绝

参考例句：

• These insects are very difficult to eradicate.这些昆虫很难根除。
• They are already battling to eradicate illnesses such as malaria and tetanus.他们已经在努力消灭疟疾、破伤风等疾病。

8 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 eradicating   

摧毁，完全根除( eradicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Objective: To study the acute and chronic toxicity of Ten-flavor-acne eradicating-capsule. 目的：探讨复方中药合剂十味平痤胶囊的急性及慢性毒性。
• We are on the verge of eradicating polio in the world. 我们已在世界消除小儿？痹症的边缘了。