2006年VOA标准英语-Uganda Promises to Stop Recruiting Child Soldie

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
16 June 2006
 

Boys show the wounds they sustained while fighting for the LRA at a rehabilitation¹ home in the northern Uganda town of Gulu, 2003  
  
The U.N. special representative for children and armed conflict says Uganda must take action to stop the recruiting of child soldiers. The U.N. official recently returned from a trip to Uganda, where she spoke² with former child soldiers recruited by the government and by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army.

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Sri Lankan lawyer and human rights advocate Radhika Coomaraswamy assumed the post of U.N. special representative for children and armed conflict two months ago. She chose Uganda as her first visit because, she says, of the particularly tragic³ circumstances of thousands of children who have been abducted⁴ by the rebel Lord's Resistance Army, or LRA.

Coomaraswamy visited Gulu and Pader Districts in northern Uganda, where she spoke with many children who had been abducted by the LRA. She says it was difficult to speak with them and not be moved and angered by the stories they had to tell.

"It is a horrific tale of abduction, sexual slavery and children made to kill their own parents and engage in all kinds of horrendous⁵ activity," she said. "And, these children that I spoke to in the North of Uganda were children that suffered deeply, and many of them showed visible signs of trauma⁶, and found it very difficult to live with the actions that they committed."

Coomaraswamy says the LRA has abducted tens of thousands of children over more than 10 years. She calls this the worst possible violation⁷ with regard to children and armed conflict in Uganda.

She says it is hard to gauge⁸ the number of children that have been drafted into the Ugandan army, but estimates the number at between 1,000 and 5,000. She says the government of Uganda does not have any conscious policy, program or project to specifically recruit children.

However, she says, children are drafted into the army because of the need for more troops in northern Uganda, corruption⁹ and other issues.

"What happens is children do join," she said. "Many of them want to join, because, having been child soldiers early on, because there is nothing else to do. There are no other alternatives in those camps. This is the only way to get income even for the families, and the families sometimes collude in this. And, so, as a result, the children are taken in to the armed forces. So, we made a very clear statement to the government that this is just not acceptable."

Coomaraswamy says the Ugandan government has agreed to strengthen implementation¹⁰ of existing laws and policies regarding child soldiers. It also has agreed to introduce legislation to make child recruitment a criminal offense¹¹, punishable under the law.

1 rehabilitation   

n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位

参考例句：

• He's booked himself into a rehabilitation clinic.他自己联系了一家康复诊所。
• No one can really make me rehabilitation of injuries.已经没有人可以真正令我的伤康复了。

2 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。

3 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

4 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

5 horrendous   

adj.可怕的，令人惊惧的

参考例句：

• He described it as the most horrendous experience of his life.他形容这是自己一生中最可怕的经历。
• The mining industry in China has a horrendous safety record.中国的煤矿工业具有令人不安的安全记录。

6 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

7 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

8 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

9 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

10 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。

11 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。