2006年VOA标准英语-Senior UN Official Optimistic Darfur Accor

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
15 May 2006

The United Nations' top emergency relief coordinator¹ says he is optimistic the agreement to end the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region can work. But he warns of serious consequences, if it is not implemented². The U.N. official also appealed to Sudan's government to approve deployment³ of a U.N. peacekeeping force.

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Jan Egeland    (file photo)   
  

U.N. Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian⁴ Affairs Jan Egeland says the Darfur peace agreement can work if it is implemented and enforced by a strong peacekeeping contingent⁵. Although only the main rebel group, which controls the majority of commanders in the field, signed the accord, Egeland says he believes the smaller rebel groups eventually will come on board.

If the plan is implemented, he says, humanitarian agencies can immediately start planning Darfur's recovery after three years of war. He says aid agencies can begin returning nearly two million internally displaced people to the homes they fled when their villages came under attack.

"If it is not going to be implemented, it will almost certainly mean that the spiral downwards⁶ that has been going on now since September of 2005 continuously will get totally out of control, and we will really go over the abyss, and into it," said Egeland. "We have to survive 2006, and many are not aware of us actually at the moment hanging by our fingernails, and we are slipping, at the moment, inside Darfur."

Egeland says it is absolutely critical that the number of African Union troops in Darfur be increased. He says 7,000 troops is not enough, and the AU force must be given a robust⁷ mandate⁸, so it can protect the civilian⁹ population and humanitarian workers. He says rich Western countries must significantly increase the amount of money they give to the African Union.

Ultimately, he says, a much larger U.N. peacekeeping force will be needed to cement the peace in Darfur, and he urged Sudan to agree to such a force.

"They are now discussing and reflecting on that. I hope there will be a 'yes', because it is in the interest of Sudan. Any U.N. peacekeeping force has to be agreed upon by the host nation," he said. "It would take time, even after we get a green light from the government, it will take months to get a U.N. force on the ground, and we have to survive those months."

Until then, he says, the African Union will remain in charge. Egeland says that is why the international community must continue to support the African Union over the coming months.

1 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

2 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

3 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

4 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

5 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

6 downwards   

adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地）

参考例句：

• He lay face downwards on his bed.他脸向下伏在床上。
• As the river flows downwards,it widens.这条河愈到下游愈宽。

7 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

8 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

9 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。