2007年VOA标准英语-Philippines Says Bombings No Threat to Asian Su

By Heda Bayron
Cebu
11 January 2007

Philippine officials played down three deadly bombings that came as Asian delegates gathered in the country for two regional summits. As VOA's Heda Bayron reports from Cebu, officials say the summits will go ahead despite the violence.

Riot police officers participate in training in preparation for 12th ASEAN Summit, 11 Jan 2007 in Mactan, Cebu

Philippine officials Thursday assured the safety of Asian leaders attending summits of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, and East Asian leaders starting Sunday.

The head of the summit organizing committee, Marciano Paynor, says the bombings, which killed at least seven people and occurred hundreds of kilometers from the summit venue¹, were not linked to the meetings.

"We would like to dispel² any notion that the recent bombings are related to our hosting of the ASEAN meetings in Cebu. Our venues³ are safe and secure," said Paynor. "The delegates are arriving as scheduled and our meetings are a go." 

Paynor says the incidents underscore the need for greater security cooperation among Asian nations. The 10 ASEAN members are expected to sign a counter-terrorism pact⁴ during the summit.

Six ASEAN members and Australia will hold talks in Jakarta this year on how to fight terrorism in the region. 

Police say the bombings Wednesday in the restive⁵ southern Philippines appear to be related to business disputes. But investigations⁶ are under way to see if they are linked to terrorist groups.

A number of Islamic militant⁷ groups operate in the southern Philippines. In addition, authorities say the Southeast Asian terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah, or JI, has trained with Philippine militants⁸.

Last week, the military said an Indonesian JI militant was killed in clashes in the south. JI has been blamed for several bombings in the Philippines and Indonesia.

Britain, Australia and Canada have warned of possible terrorist attacks during the meetings. Philippine police and military are on high alert nationwide.

1 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

2 dispel   

vt.驱走，驱散，消除

参考例句：

• I tried in vain to dispel her misgivings.我试图消除她的疑虑，但没有成功。
• We hope the programme will dispel certain misconceptions about the disease.我们希望这个节目能消除对这种疾病的一些误解。

3 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

4 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

5 restive   

adj.不安宁的，不安静的

参考例句：

• The government has done nothing to ease restrictions and manufacturers are growing restive.政府未采取任何措施放松出口限制,因此国内制造商变得焦虑不安。
• The audience grew restive.观众变得不耐烦了。

6 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

7 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

8 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。