voa标准英语2008年-UN Chief Appeals for Congo Rebel Leader to Keep

The United Nations secretary-general is expressing hope that two envoys¹ he has dispatched to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda can contain what Ban Ki-Moon calls a "very serious situation" in the region. Speaking to reporters in the Indian capital Friday afternoon, the secretary-general called on the rebel Congolese leader advancing on Goma to keep the cease-fire and engage in dialogue. VOA correspondent Steve Herman in New Delhi has details.
　

UN soldier patrols street in Goma, 31 Oct 2008

The United Nations chief is calling for Congolese rebels to talk rather than fight as the world body warns of a "humanitarian² crisis of catastrophic proportion" along the Rwandan-Congo border.

Two U.N. envoys, as well as the top American diplomat³ for Africa, are in the region hoping to establish negotiations⁴ between the Congolese government and ethnic⁵ Tutsi rebels.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he had been in touch numerous times with key world leaders about the central African crisis during his two-day visit to India.

A rebel Tutsi commander, Laurent Nkunda, called a unilateral cease-fire after halting his advance this week on Goma in eastern Congo. Nkunda, who commands about 10,000 fighters, is threatening to take the provincial⁶ capital near the Rwandan border unless international peacekeepers guarantee a cease-fire.

Mr. Ban is appealing to Nkunda, the leader of the "National Congress for People's Defense," to engage in discussions to avert⁷ rekindling⁸ hostilities⁹ that led to two wars in the past 12 years, involving eight African nations.
　

Ban Ki-moon talks to reporters in New Delhi, 31 Oct 2008

"I also urge this General Nkunda of CNDP to disengage and keep this cease-fire declaration which he has made and engage in dialog," Ban said.

The United Nations has 17,000 troops in Congo, its largest contingent¹⁰ of peacekeepers in the world. As the U.N. scrambles¹¹ to transfer troops from other parts of the country to the border region, officials at U.N. headquarters warned that their force is already overstretched and unable to protect civilians¹² in the region.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban notes that the European Union remains¹³ divided about whether to send troops to Congo.

"I sincerely hope they will be able to agree but according to a report I received there has been some disagreement among some member states of the European Union," he said. "I understand that they are now looking at this issue again."

Nkunda, vowing¹⁴ to protect Tutsis, a minority in eastern Congo, is rejecting the peace accord signed in January, saying the process has been overly dominated by the government of Congo President Joseph Kabila.

Mr. Ban says he has been speaking over the past two days both with Mr. Kabila and Rwandan President Paul Kagame. The Congolese government has accused Rwanda of backing rebels.

Meanwhile the U.N.'s Human Rights Commissioner¹⁵, Navi Pillay, issued a statement condemning¹⁶ Congolese government forces for a rampage of looting, killing¹⁷ and rapes¹⁸ in Goma.

Pillay says during the past few days such human rights violations¹⁹ have been recorded by U.N. staff in the region. He also accuses rebel forces of abuses as well, including firing indiscriminately on a medical facility where government soldiers had fled.

Media reports from the area indicate that thousands of traumatized refugees are on the move, hoping to return home beyond the front lines in eastern Congo while the tenuous²⁰ cease-fire remains in place.

1 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

2 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。

3 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。

4 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

5 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。

6 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

7 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

8 rekindling   

v.使再燃( rekindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• There might be a rekindling of the kind of nationalistic fervour of yesteryear. 过去的国家主义狂热可能再次被点燃。 来自互联网
• Bryant and O'Neal on the floor at the same time, rekindling memories both good and bad. 科比和奥尼尔在地板上在同一时间，死灰复燃的回忆有好有坏。 来自互联网

9 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。

10 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

11 scrambles   

n.抢夺( scramble的名词复数 )v.快速爬行( scramble的第三人称单数 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• The breaking of symmetry scrambles the underlying order of nature. 对称性的破坏会打乱自然界的根本秩序。 来自互联网
• The move comes as Japan scrambles for ways to persuade women to have more babies. 这一行动的出现正值日本政府想尽各种办法鼓励妇女多生育孩子。 来自互联网

12 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

13 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

14 vowing   

起誓，发誓（vow的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild its collapsed bridge. 布什总统承诺将帮助明尼阿波利斯重建坍塌的大桥。
• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild this collapse bridge. 布什总统发誓要帮助明尼阿波利斯重建起这座坍塌的桥梁。

15 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。

16 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

17 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。

18 rapes   

n.芸苔( rape的名词复数 )；强奸罪；强奸案；肆意损坏v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的第三人称单数 )；强奸

参考例句：

• The man who had committed several rapes was arrested. 那个犯了多起强奸案的男人被抓起来了。 来自辞典例句
• The incidence of reported rapes rose 0.8 percent. 美国联邦调查局还发布了两份特别报告。 来自互联网

19 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

20 tenuous   

adj.细薄的，稀薄的，空洞的

参考例句：

• He has a rather tenuous grasp of reality.他对现实认识很肤浅。
• The air ten miles above the earth is very tenuous.距离地面十公里的空气十分稀薄。