2007年VOA标准英语-Residents Flee Kenya Slum Fearing Police Crackd

By Katy Migiro
Nairobi
08 June 2007

Police in Kenya continue searching through a sprawling¹ Nairobi slum, where they have been battling with members of the violent Mungiki sect² for the past four days. Hundreds of residents have fled the violence, which has left more than 30 people dead. For VOA, Katy Migiro has this report.

 

A woman with facial injuries runs away with her baby next to people rounded up during fighting between police and Mungiki sect in Nairobi's Mathare slum, 07 Jun 2007

On Friday, hundreds of people poured out of Nairobi's sprawling Mathare slum, which has been the epicenter of the bloody³ police crackdown on the Mungiki sect. The residents carried mattresses⁴, furniture and sacks of clothes in handcarts and cars.

 

Many said they feared further violence, not from the Mungiki, but from the Kenyan police.

 

A woman who did not want to be named said that she was beaten by the police who believed that she was married to a member of the Mungiki sect.

"They are claiming my husband is Mungiki. I told them I don't have a husband," she said. "They beat me. They said I should say where is my husband and he's Mungiki."

The police operation in the Nairobi slum began on Monday night, following the deaths of two officers. Officials blamed the sect for the killings⁵.

 

On Thursday, some 500 members of the paramilitary wing of the police, known as the GSU, and regular police officers cordoned⁶ off a section of the Mathare slum, barring anyone from entering or leaving the area for six hours. Men and women were separated and order to lie down in the dirt while they were frisked. Residents were told to help the police demolish⁷ shacks⁸ which the police said were known Mungiki hideouts. Twelve people were shot dead and around 200 were arrested.

 

David Kimaiyo, director of operations at Police Headquarter in Nairobi, denied that his officers have used excessive force.

 

The Mungiki are thought to be militants⁹ from Kenya's biggest ethnic¹⁰ group, the Kikuyu. Some have linked them to politicians wanting to cause unrest and fear ahead of December elections. The sect promotes such ancient tradtions as female circumcision which was outlawed¹¹ in 2002.

Five former and current members of parliament were recently questioned by the police over Mungiki connections.

1 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

2 sect   

n.派别，宗教，学派，派系

参考例句：

• When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
• Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。

3 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

4 mattresses   

褥垫，床垫( mattress的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The straw mattresses are airing there. 草垫子正在那里晾着。
• The researchers tested more than 20 mattresses of various materials. 研究人员试验了二十多个不同材料的床垫。

5 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

6 cordoned   

v.封锁，用警戒线围住( cordon的过去式 )

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the area until the bomb was defused. 警方封锁了这个地区直到炸弹被拆除为止。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 demolish   

v.拆毁(建筑物等)，推翻(计划、制度等)

参考例句：

• They're going to demolish that old building.他们将拆毁那座旧建筑物。
• He was helping to demolish an underground garage when part of the roof collapsed.他当时正在帮忙拆除一个地下汽车库，屋顶的一部份突然倒塌。

8 shacks   

n.窝棚，简陋的小屋( shack的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They live in shacks which they made out of wood. 他们住在用木头搭成的简陋的小屋里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Most people in Port au-Prince live in tin shacks. 太子港的大多数居民居住在铁皮棚里。 来自互联网

9 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。

10 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

11 outlawed   

宣布…为不合法（outlaw的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Most states have outlawed the use of marijuana. 大多数州都宣布使用大麻为非法行为。
• I hope the sale of tobacco will be outlawed someday. 我希望有朝一日烟草制品会禁止销售。