voa标准英语2008年-Thousands of Congolese Refugees Flee to Uganda,

The UN refugee agency reports thousands of Congolese refugees have fled to Uganda and Rwanda in the past few days seeking safety from escalating¹ fighting in North Kivu province. Rebel forces loyal to renegade leader Laurent Nkundu have made serious inroads into territory previously² held by the Congolese army of President Joseph Kabila around the eastern town of Goma. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from UNHCR headquarters in Geneva.
　

Internally Displaced People (IDP) leave Goma in direction to the improvised3 IDP's camp in Kibati, about 25 kilometers north of the provincial4 capital of Goma, 31 Oct 2008

The UN refugee agency reports more than 8,500 Congolese refugees have crossed the border into Uganda since the latest round of fighting started in August - some 2,500 of them over the past few days.

UN refugee spokesman, Ron Redmond, says many of the refugees said they had walked for more than 20 hours from the Rugarama area in Congo. This is about 17 kilometers from the Uganda border.

He says most of the Congolese refugees in Uganda are dispersed⁵ in a dozen villages along the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"They are accommodated by host families, friends and relatives," said Redmond. "They are in fairly good condition. But, we fear that the situation could soon deteriorate⁶ if medical, water and sanitation⁷ facilities are unable to cope with rapidly increasing needs. Logistics are difficult. It is a very remote area. In addition, the food supplies in that part of Uganda generally depend on local imports from DRC."

Meanwhile, Redmond says some 1,200 other Congolese refugees, who fled to Rwanda earlier in the week, were staying in a school in Gisenyi. He says they did not want to be registered by UNHCR and transported to the transit⁸ center.

He says many of the refugees have since returned to Goma to check on their properties and families left behind. Many others, he says, have moved in with relatives in Gisenyi or crossed the border to Uganda.

Redmond says the UNHCR is going to have to set up new sites to accommodate the growing number of refugees and displaced people.

"It is clear we are going to require more resources, more funding to cope with the new needs," he said. "Working with the UN system and our partners in the UN as well as NGO partners, we are going to need to rapidly distribute tarpaulins⁹, blankets, sleeping mats, jerry cans, buckets, mosquito nets. All of the aid items that are absolutely essential in a situation like this where people have fled with nothing."

The UN High Commissioner¹⁰ for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, is renewing his appeal to all sides in the conflict to respect humanitarian¹¹ principles and to ensure the safety of civilians¹² and those trying to help them.

He says hundreds of thousands of people who have already suffered far too much are in danger and in desperate need of help.

The UNHCR reports more than a quarter of a million people have fled their homes since August. Altogether, it estimates there are more than one million internally displaced people in North Kivu.

1 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 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。

4 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。

5 dispersed   

adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的

参考例句：

• The clouds dispersed themselves. 云散了。
• After school the children dispersed to their homes. 放学后，孩子们四散回家了。

6 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

7 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

8 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

9 tarpaulins   

n.防水帆布，防水帆布罩( tarpaulin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Main wood to aluminum and plexiglass, PC, tarpaulins, toughened glass. 主材以铝型材与进口有机玻璃、PC、防水布、钢化玻璃。 来自互联网
• That means providing tents or other materials, including plastic sheeting, tarpaulins and wood. 这意味着需要帐篷和其他物资，包括塑料布、放水油布和木材。 来自互联网

10 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。

11 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。

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。