2007年VOA标准英语-Ugandan Army Accused of Looting Teak Wood from

By Alisha Ryu
Nairobi
27 September 2007

Uganda's Minister of State for Defense¹ says she is shocked by accusations² that soldiers in the Ugandan army have been illegally logging valuable timber from southern Sudan and taking it back to Uganda. The allegations were made earlier this week in a detailed³ report by the independent Swiss-based research group, Small Arms Survey. VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu has the story from our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi.

Monday's report by the Small Arms Survey is largely based on interviews with eyewitnesses⁴, who say that Ugandan soldiers have been clearing teak forests in southern Sudan since they arrived in the area in March 2003.

The report says army officers, described as being business-minded, are supervising the illegal logging. In one forest near Uganda's border with Sudan, witnesses say as many as 200 trees were cut down before local authorities could be notified. The trees, they say, have been hauled away by trucks to Uganda.

Teak is durable⁵ wood, mainly used in shipbuilding and for manufacturing outdoor furniture. It is resistant⁶ to warping⁷ and to insect and water damage, making the wood valuable and highly-prized around the world.

The Ugandan soldiers are in southern Sudan taking part in Operation Iron Fist, a Sudan-approved military operation aimed at flushing out fighters from the Ugandan rebel Lord's Resistance Army, who moved their bases from northern Uganda to southern Sudan in 1994.

In an interview earlier in the week with Uganda's Daily Monitor newspaper, an Ugandan intelligence officer, Colonel Charles Otema, acknowledged that the army has known about the allegations of illegal logging in Sudan for quite some time and even launched an internal investigation⁸. Colonel Otema says the investigation failed to prove any wrongdoing.

Uganda Minister of State for Defense Ruth Nankabirwa tells VOA that she knew nothing about the allegations until they appeared in the Small Arms Survey this week.

"It is the first time I am hearing [about] these allegations based on our presence in Sudan," said Nankabirwa. "But I am not going to just let the allegations lie. We are trying to find out the basis of the allegations and we shall be guided by our own findings."

This is not the first time the Ugandan army has been accused of looting natural resources from a neighboring country.

At the World Court in The Hague two years ago, the government in Congo Kinshasa demanded compensation from Uganda, after it accused Ugandan commanders of committing massive human rights abuses and stealing gold, diamonds, and timber from the country between 1998 and 2002.

Uganda and Rwanda invaded eastern Congo in 1998, after rebel factions⁹ they supported took up arms against the late Congolese President Laurent Kabila.

A cease-fire was declared a year later and Uganda eventually withdrew its troops in 2002. But a 2001 U.N. report condemned¹⁰ Uganda and Rwanda for perpetuating¹¹ the conflict, partly to loot Congo Kinshasa's natural resources.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni dismissed the charges, saying there was nothing of value in Congo to exploit.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

3 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

4 eyewitnesses   

目击者( eyewitness的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The examination of all the eyewitnesses took a week. 对所有证人的质询用了一周的时间。
• Several eyewitnesses testified that they saw the officers hit Miller in the face. 几位目击证人证明他们看见那几个警官打了米勒的脸。

5 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

6 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

7 warping   

n.翘面，扭曲，变形v.弄弯，变歪( warp的现在分词 )；使（行为等）不合情理，使乖戾，

参考例句：

• Tilting, warping, and changes in elevation can seriously affect canals and shoreline facilities of various kinks. 倾斜、翘曲和高程变化可以严重地影响水渠和各种岸边设备。 来自辞典例句
• A warping, bending, or cracking, as that by excessive force. 翘曲，弯曲，裂开：翘曲、弯曲或裂开，如过强的外力引起。 来自互联网

8 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

9 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

10 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。

11 perpetuating   

perpetuate的现在进行式

参考例句：

• Revenge leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of violence. 怨怨相报会导致永不休止的暴力。
• It'set out to eradicate heresy, and ended by perpetuating it. 它的目的只是要根除异端邪说，结果却巩固了异端邪说。 来自英汉文学