2006年VOA标准英语-19 Members of Somalia's Cabinet Resign

By Alisha Ryu
Mogadishu
27 July 2006

Nineteen Cabinet ministers in Somalia's fragile secular¹ interim² government in Baidoa resigned Thursday, possibly in an attempt to facilitate a power-sharing deal with rival Islamists. Meanwhile, the Islamists strengthened their grip on power, accepting the peaceful surrender of its last rival secular militia³ in Mogadishu.

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The list of those who resigned from Somalia's U.N.-backed but powerless Transitional Federal Government includes seven ministers, seven assistant ministers, and four state ministers.

In a joint⁴ letter, the ministers complained that the government lacked transparency and accountability and its leaders had failed to work toward national reconciliation⁵ and development since the interim body was formed 19 months ago.

In a clear split with interim government President Abdullahi Yusuf, the ministers said that the government compromised itself by becoming too close to Somalia's much-feared and reviled⁶ neighbor Ethiopia. Yusuf asked for Ethiopia's help in dealing⁷ with the growing Islamist threat to his government's authority.

The regional power, which is largely Christian⁸, strongly supports secular leaders Yusuf and the prime minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi. Ethiopia is believed to have sent its troops across the border in recent weeks to protect the interim government from a possible attack by fundamentalist Islamic militias⁹, which have vowed¹⁰ to expand their control over all of Somalia after seizing Mogadishu in early June.

Ethiopia's military involvement has been condemned¹¹ by Islamic leaders in Mogadishu, who say they will not attend a second round of talks with the interim government in Khartoum, Sudan until all Ethiopian soldiers leave Somalia.

Ethiopia says it will defend its interests, no matter what the cost and has accused arch enemy Eritrea of giving arms and training to the Islamists. Addis Ababa says the latest shipment of weapons from Eritrea arrived Wednesday in Mogadishu by plane.

The Bush administration has been urging the main parties in the Somalia conflict to commit to dialogue for a unity¹² government, and is calling on Somalia's neighbors to avoid any actions that might complicate¹³ those efforts.

The two Horn of African countries fought a bitter border war from 1998 to 2000. They both have records of backing rebel groups to destabilize each other and Somalis fear their country could be a new front in their conflict.

To entice¹⁴ Islamists back to the negotiating table, lawmakers in Baidoa, where the interim government is based, say a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Gedi has been presented in parliament for debate on Saturday.

If the vote passes, Somali observers say interim government representatives could offer the key post of prime minister to the Islamists as a move toward bringing them into a formal government and avoiding a major war in the region.

Meanwhile, the Islamists completed their nearly two month-long takeover of the capital, accepting the peaceful surrender of the last rival militiamen and their territory.

Clan¹⁵ militiamen, under the command of current interim interior minister and factional leader Hussein Mohamed Farah Aideed, have held the vast presidential compound, known as Villa¹⁶ Somalia, since the country plunged¹⁷ into lawlessness and factionalism 15 years ago.

In a ceremony at the compound on Thursday, Aideed's representative at Villa Somalia, Abukar Ganay, told Islamic officials that Aideed's Sa'ad clan welcomed the handover of the complex as a symbolic¹⁸ new beginning for the country.

Ganay says the clan decided¹⁹ to hand over the Villa Somalia so that an Islamic court could be established to bring law and order at last to all Somalis.

Last month, Aideed told VOA that he would never surrender Villa Somalia to the Islamists without a fight. The factional leader-turned-politician has not said what made him change his mind.

1 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。

2 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

3 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

4 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

5 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

6 reviled   

v.辱骂，痛斥( revile的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The tramp reviled the man who drove him off. 流浪汉辱骂那位赶他走开的人。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The old man reviled against corruption. 那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 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。

8 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

9 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

10 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

11 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

12 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

13 complicate   

vt.使复杂化，使混乱，使难懂

参考例句：

• There is no need to complicate matters.没有必要使问题复杂化。
• These events will greatly complicate the situation.这些事件将使局势变得极其复杂。

14 entice   

v.诱骗，引诱，怂恿

参考例句：

• Nothing will entice the children from television.没有任何东西能把孩子们从电视机前诱开。
• I don't see why the English should want to entice us away from our native land.我不明白，为什英国人要引诱我们离开自己的国土。

15 clan   

n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派

参考例句：

• She ranks as my junior in the clan.她的辈分比我小。
• The Chinese Christians,therefore,practically excommunicate themselves from their own clan.所以，中国的基督徒简直是被逐出了自己的家族了。

16 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

17 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

18 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

19 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。