2006年VOA标准英语-US Pushes for Darfur Peace Deal Before Lat

By Catherine Maddux
Washington
04 May 2006

The pressure on Sudan's warring parties in the western Darfur region is growing as a third deadline approaches Thursday to reach a peace deal proposed by the African Union to end more than three years of violence.  VOA's Catherine Maddux examines the details of the proposed agreement and what some experts say are its flaws.

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The peace agreement proposed by the African Union is more than 80 pages long and attempts to resolve the most contentious¹ issues in the Darfur conflict, such as disarmament and power sharing between rebels and the Khartoum government.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Susan Rice, center left, walks through the ramshakle market in Marial Bai, southern Sudan accompanied her officials along by soldiers and officials from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (file)   
  

But according to Susan Rice, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former assistant secretary of state for African affairs, the foundation of the accord appears to be weak.

"And I think in contrast to the longer and much more detailed³ Comprehensive Peace Agreement related to the North-South conflict in Sudan, this agreement has been relatively⁴ hurriedly put together and does not go into exhaustive detail on accountability and implementation⁵ of some of the key things - like how to accomplish disarmament of the Janjaweed, which the Sudanese government has promised on numerous occasions and failed to fulfill," Rice says.

Susan Rice also says the current plan does not adequately spell out revenue and power sharing details, and as such, is asking Darfur rebels to accept the status quo.  She is suspicious about Khartoum's willingness to sign onto one of the very first versions of the deal.

"The rush to reach conclusion of the agreement is causing great consternation⁶, particularly as the Sudanese government so quickly embraced the details of the accord and the rebels have been far more reluctant," Rice says.  "If you recall that the Sudanese government had to have its arm broken to sign the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, it makes you wonder what must be in the African Union Darfur agreement that they found so attractive that they were ready to commit to sign on first sight."

The draft agreement calls for the disarmament of the pro-government Janjaweed fighters, held largely responsible for war crimes against civilians⁷ that the United States calls genocide.  It also allows for rebel forces to be absorbed into Sudan's national security forces.  

US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick, left, Jendayi Frazer, U.S. Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, second left, and head of Sudan's governmental delegation⁸ Majzoub al-Khalifa, front right, attend peace talks   
  
Also under the proposed deal, the Sudanese government is to give millions of dollars to develop the impoverished⁹ Darfur region - a key reason rebels took up arms against Khartoum more than three years ago.

While the Sudan government was ready to sign the deal, rebel groups held out, sparking the unexpected entrance of top U.S., British and African diplomats¹⁰ to the peace talks, being held in Abuja, Nigeria.

Rebels are pressing for a faster timetable to disarm² the pro-government Janjaweed militiamen.  They also want more of their ranks to be integrated into the Sudanese army. 

Rebel leaders also want to unify¹¹ the three states that make up Sudan's Darfur region, with some autonomy built in - not unlike what former southern rebels were able to get in their peace deal ending 20 years of war with the Sudanese government.  Another rebel demand calls for political representation of a unified¹² Darfur region. 

Suliman Baldo is the director of the Africa Program at the International Crisis Group.  He says rebels believe it is absolutely crucial to have a strong representation to ensure implementation of whatever deal is made with the Sudanese government.

"The rebel groups are insisting this is necessary to preserve the interests of the region and whatever peace agreement is reached is observed," Baldo says. "Because the influence of an authority of a regional government would be necessary to ensure compliance¹³ from the central government and from the armed groups in Darfur itself.  This is a status that Khartoum is not going to accept easily because it chips away at its control over power."

Whether the current deadline is met or extended, Susan Rice of the Brookings Institution warns that one important element must not be forgotten during the negotiations¹⁴.

"I think all sides need to be mindful of the fact that a negotiated agreement to the underlying¹⁵ conflict does not - in and of itself - result in the halting of the genocide.  So, there is a separate imperative¹⁶ in addition to a negotiated solution to halt this genocide," Rice says.  "And I think it is very important that the international community does not lose sight of the fact that since the Sudanese government has not responded to pressure and incentives¹⁷ to end the genocide, that the only way to accomplish that is actually to put a maximally effective African and international force on the ground under U.N. auspices¹⁸ to protect civilians and halt the genocide."

There are about seven-thousand African Union peacekeepers in Darfur.  Although it is widely accepted they cannot be expected to keep the peace with their few resources, the Sudanese government has repeatedly refused to accept a proposed U.N. force to augment¹⁹ African troops.

1 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

2 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

3 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

4 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 consternation   

n.大为吃惊，惊骇

参考例句：

• He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
• Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。

7 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。

8 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

9 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 unify   

vt.使联合，统一；使相同，使一致

参考例句：

• How can we unify such scattered islands into a nation?我们怎么才能把如此分散的岛屿统一成一个国家呢？
• It is difficult to imagine how the North and South could ever agree on a formula to unify the divided peninsula.很难想象南北双方在统一半岛的方案上究竟怎样才能达成一致。

12 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

13 compliance   

n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从

参考例句：

• I was surprised by his compliance with these terms.我对他竟然依从了这些条件而感到吃惊。
• She gave up the idea in compliance with his desire.她顺从他的愿望而放弃自己的主意。

14 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

15 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

16 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。

17 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

18 auspices   

n.资助，赞助

参考例句：

• The association is under the auspices of Word Bank.这个组织是在世界银行的赞助下办的。
• The examination was held under the auspices of the government.这次考试是由政府主办的。

19 augment   

vt.(使)增大，增加，增长，扩张

参考例句：

• They hit upon another idea to augment their income.他们又想出一个增加收入的办法。
• The government's first concern was to augment the army and auxiliary forces.政府首先关心的是增强军队和辅助的力量。