VOA常速英语2008年-UN Officials, Activists Express Regret over Pro

By Nico Colombant
Dakar
18 March 2008

U.N. officials and human-rights activists² are expressing regret that the situation of Liberian refugees in Ghana has deteriorated³.  Ghanaian police arrested and moved away dozens of women Monday after they had staged several weeks of protest outside the Buduburam refugee camp near Accra.  VOA's Nico Colombant has more from our West Africa bureau in Dakar.

A spokeswoman for the U.N. refugee agency, Needa Jehu-Hoyah, says the mass arrest is the type of situation officials were trying to avoid.

"I think it is unfortunate that not much headway has been made, especially since the tripartite meeting we had with the refugees and the ministry⁴ of interior on 11th of March," she said.

The UNHCR is offering refugees $100 for each adult, and $50 for each child to resettle in Liberia.

The deadline for this program is the end of June.

Refugees who were protesting have said they want to be given $1,000 before going back to Liberia or to be resettled in Europe, and even get free schooling⁵.

Jehu-Hoyah from the UNHCR says refugees must understand none of this is possible.

"UNHCR has already informed the community variously, including with the resettlement countries, that resettlement is not an option, that is available for Liberian refugees right now," she added.  "Regarding the $1,000 for each individual, UNHCR is simply not in a position to pay that kind of money."

She says Liberians in Ghana must also understand they will not be refugees forever.

"Eventually, inevitably⁶, assuming all things progress positively⁷ as they are doing in Liberia, there will come a time, when the stakeholders will decide that the Liberian refugees no longer need refugee protection, that will happen, but at that time, there will be various things going on," she explained.  "I do not think it will happen overnight, it is a consultative process."

A human-rights activist¹, Tuinese Amuzu, went to the Buduburam refugee camp to check reports made by the refugees that they were mistreated during Monday's mass arrest.

Police say these were done peacefully, and that the refugees were arrested, because they were violating Ghana's public law order.  They say they will be tried through Ghana's court system.

Whatever happened, Amuzu finds it unfortunate it has come to this.

"We appear to be too much in a hurry to just send our brothers back to Liberia," he said.  "I think that will do more disservice to ourselves than to any other person."

There are an estimated 40,000 Liberian refugees in Ghana, even though the Liberian war ended in 2003.  Many say they lost everything and are afraid to go back to a country where they believe there is still ethnic⁸ persecution⁹.

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

5 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

6 inevitably   

adv.不可避免地；必然发生地

参考例句：

• In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
• Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。

7 positively   

adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实

参考例句：

• She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
• The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。

8 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。

9 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。