voa标准英语2008年-African Union Condemns Violence in Congo

The African Union has condemned¹ the violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and is launching a 'quiet diplomacy²' initiative aimed at bringing all parties involved to the negotiating table. VOA's Peter Heinlein has more from AU headquarters in Addis Ababa.

A communiqué issued late Friday by the AU Peace and Security Council strongly condemns³ the hostile actions launched by forces under Congolese rebel commander, General Laurent Nkunda. The rebel chief commands a force of about 10,000 that is poised⁴ outside Goma, on the DRC border with Rwanda.

Nkunda's forces stand accused of looting, killing⁵ and rape⁶ during their advance on Goma several days ago. Rights groups have also criticized government troops for atrocities⁷ and looting.

The AU communiqué issued Friday does not mention Nkunda or his forces by name, but AU Peace and Security Commissioner⁸ Ramtane Lamamra said there should be no doubt it refers to Nkunda.

"The fact [is] hat troops of Mr. Nkunda are the ones who have launched the offensive," he said.
　

Internally Displaced People leave Goma toward an improvised9 IDP camp in Kibati, north of Goma, 31 Oct. 2008

Commissioner Lamamra said the African Union is working closely with the United Nations, the United States and the European Union to find a political solution before further violence descends¹⁰ on Goma. He told reporters a diplomatic initiative aimed at ending the standoff around Goma is a cause for hope.

"There are contacts aimed at bringing together leaders in the region," he said. "This is what I called quiet diplomacy, and we certainly hope this will bring fruit."

The AU communiqué pledged strong support for the U.N. peacekeeping force known by its French acronym¹² MONUC, and condemned recent attacks on its blue-helmeted peacekeepers.

Tunisia's AU Ambassador Hatem Atallah, who holds the rotating chairmanship of the Peace and Security Council, expressed hope that a strong and coordinated¹³ diplomatic push could restore stability around Goma, where tens of thousands of residents and government troops have fled as rebels advanced to within a few kilometers of the town.

"This is the start of the process. Things can evolve," he said. "The main thing we are interested in today …is our strong concern about the violence and hostilities¹⁴, but we are concerned about the humanitarian¹⁵ situation. People are fleeing and this is exerting a heavy toll¹⁶ on the population, and this is our main concern at this point."

The head of the MONUC force said this week his peacekeepers are stretched to the limit, and asked that more troops be dispatched urgently. MONUC is already the largest U.N. peacekeeping mission, with about 17,000 police and soldiers in the country.

African Union officials said they support efforts to bring more international peacekeepers to the tense region. At the same time, however, they said it is unlikely any African troops are available to help. An East African standby force designed to respond to crises such as this is not yet operational.
　

Renegade General Laurent Nkunda (File)

Nkunda launched a rebellion three years ago, saying the transition to democracy in the DRC had excluded ethnic¹⁷ Tutsi. He charges that the government in Kinshasa has not protected ethnic Tutsis from Hutu militias¹⁸ who escaped to eastern Congo after the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

Referring to the urgent need of a quick diplomatic solution to the current tensions around Goma, one AU diplomat¹¹ commented "nobody wants another Rwanda".

1 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。

2 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

3 condemns   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的第三人称单数 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• Her widowhood condemns her to a lonely old age. 守寡使她不得不过着孤独的晚年生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The public opinion condemns prostitution. 公众舆论遣责卖淫。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

7 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

9 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

10 descends   

v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite. 这个节日起源于宗教仪式。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The path descends steeply to the village. 小路陡直而下直到村子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

12 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。

13 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

14 hostilities   

n.战争；敌意(hostility的复数)；敌对状态；战事

参考例句：

• Mexico called for an immediate cessation of hostilities. 墨西哥要求立即停止敌对行动。
• All the old hostilities resurfaced when they met again. 他们再次碰面时，过去的种种敌意又都冒了出来。

15 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

16 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

17 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。

18 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