2007年VOA标准英语-Islamists Invited to Somali Reconciliation Talk

By Alisha Ryu
Nairobi
28 June 2007

The foreign affairs secretary for Somalia's ousted¹ Islamic Courts Union has confirmed to VOA that he has received an invitation from the country's western-backed transitional government to attend peace talks next month in Mogadishu.  But as VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu reports from our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi, the ICU leader says such talks are not possible while Ethiopian troops are still in Somalia.  

Speaking to VOA from the Gulf² state of Qatar, Islamic Courts Union Foreign Affairs Secretary Ibrahim Hassan Addow says the chairman of the Somali reconciliation³ committee, Ali Mahdi, extended the invitation to him by telephone last week.

"Ali Mahdi called me a few days ago," Addow said. "The problem is there has not been any discussion between the ICU and those who are saying they are in charge of reconciliation.  There has not been any contact at all."

Inviting⁴ Addow to the long-delayed reconciliation conference is a striking turn-around for government leaders, who had insisted the talks would be strictly⁵ clan-based and rejected holding talks with any political entities⁶, especially the Islamic Courts Union.  

Many Somalis in the capital, Mogadishu, believe interim⁷ leaders would not have made such a conciliatory gesture without intense pressure from the government's biggest financial backer, the United States. 

Six months ago, neighboring Ethiopia, with U.S. support, helped Somalia's secular⁸ transitional government take power in Mogadishu from the Islamic Courts Union.  The Islamic Courts enjoyed popular support but, in the view of the West, was becoming increasingly radicalized. 

To boost popular support for the weak transitional government and to end a violent insurgency⁹ in the capital, the United States and other western nations urged Somalia's new leaders to quickly organize a broad-based reconciliation conference, which included all Somalis willing to rebuild the war-devastated country peacefully.

The interim government had first intended to hold the peace conference in April, but insecurity in Mogadishu forced a delay.  The talks have since been delayed two more times and are now scheduled for mid-July.

But Addow says there can be no reconciliation process without the immediate¹⁰ withdrawal¹¹ of thousands of Ethiopian troops, who are still in Somalia protecting the interim government.

"The ICU is ready to go to any negotiation¹² table anywhere," Addow said. "The only problem now is Somalia is under occupation and the TFG [transitional federal government] is not ruling Somalia.  Ethiopia is the one that is running the show.  And all those opposing the Ethiopian occupation cannot express their views politically.  Somalia is not a free country right now, so it is amazing that some people are saying there will be a reconciliation in Mogadishu.  We cannot attend any conference there."

The Islamic Courts Union leader tells VOA that he has been told the reconciliation committee chairman, Ali Mahdi, is preparing to travel to Eritrea to hold direct talks with Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, the head of the Islamic courts' moderate Executive Council, and some former members of the Somali parliament who are opposing the interim government. 

1 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 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。

4 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

5 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

6 entities   

实体对像； 实体，独立存在体，实际存在物( entity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our newspaper and our printing business form separate corporate entities. 我们的报纸和印刷业形成相对独立的企业实体。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities. 北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

7 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。

8 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。

9 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

12 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。