VOA标准英语2011--Water Scarcity Root of Darfur Conflict

Water Scarcity¹ Root of Darfur Conflict

The conflict in Western Sudan's Darfur region erupted more than eight years ago. It has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and displaced an estimated two million people. Disputes over scarce water and grazing land between black African farmers and Arab pastoralist communities triggered the war. Lack of access to water remains² one of the major drivers of the ongoing³ conflict in Darfur.  An international conference in Khartoum at the end of June will focus on the critical issue of water and how the equitable⁴ use and management of this limited resource can help build peace in this troubled region.
When people in developed countries want water, they turn on the tap.
When people in Darfur want water, they have to search far and wide for it.
A UN video shows women and children walking long distances through the arid⁵ desert to fetch water in Darfur. They wait in lengthy⁶ lines at the communal⁷ well to fill their jerry cans with water for their drinking and washing needs. This process is repeated every three or four days.
According to the United Nations, one person uses nearly 400 liters of water per day, in the world's wealthiest countries. In Darfur, 400 liters of water is shared by 20 people.
Mohamed Yonis is Deputy Joint⁸ Special Representative of the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur.
"Water is one of the main root causes of this conflict," said Yonis. "There is a need to address this issue and we do believe that water will serve as an instrument for peace."
The United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has been in Darfur for three and one half years. Yonis says well managed and equitably⁹ distributed water resources can ensure sustainable peace for the people in Darfur.
"Water we believe is life and we believe it could contribute to the initiatives that the UN is making in terms of trying to reach peace with the people of Darfur," added Yonis.
The United Nations is mediating¹⁰ Sudan peace negotiations¹¹ in Doha, Qatar. But, a political solution remains elusive¹². The world body is hoping for better results from the Water Conference it is organizing jointly¹³ with the Government of Sudan at the end of the month.
The conference will seek $1.5 billion from donors¹⁴ to support 56 water projects over the next six years. These projects will focus on rebuilding the water infrastructure¹⁵ devastated¹⁶ by conflict and neglect. They will introduce new technologies and systems for managing water, preparing for drought and helping¹⁷ farmers adapt to climate change.
Robin¹⁸ Bovey, the Sudan Program Manager for the UN Environment Program, says providing water in the Sahel is difficult because there is not much of it.   He calls managing water resources a massive undertaking¹⁹ that cannot be done in isolation²⁰.
"We are presently setting up drought committees in camps," said Bovey. "There will be another drought. I mean there will be droughts that occur again. This is just something that happens on a cyclical basis. But, where you have population shifts, you have to make sure that people are prepared."
Nils Kastberg, the representative for the UN Children's Fund for Sudan, says getting access to that water requires peace. And peace can best be achieved on the local level.
"If we put a well and that leads to different groups of people fighting over access to that water, than we are contributing to conflict," added Kastberg. "If, instead, we can use the access to water as a way for establishing dialogue between different groups, so that through that dialogue we can provide, for instance, access to water, but at the same time get the dialogue going that is so needed, then we are constructing peace from the local level."
But, aid agencies agree these peace initiatives ultimately will lead nowhere without cooperation from the Sudanese government. They are urging the government to provide services equally to all people in Darfur and to grant them freedom of movement so they can distribute essential relief and care.
They believe the best prospects²¹ for peace lie with local communities, not with the Central government. They say people are tired of fighting. They want to trade their goods. They want access to markets and water.
And this, aid workers say, is prompting many communities to conclude their own peace agreements. If this process grows and spreads from village to village, they say, these local agreements could translate into a significant regional-wide peace for Darfur.

1 scarcity   

n.缺乏，不足，萧条

参考例句：

• The scarcity of skilled workers is worrying the government.熟练工人的缺乏困扰着政府。
• The scarcity of fruit was caused by the drought.水果供不应求是由于干旱造成的。

2 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。

3 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

4 equitable   

adj.公平的；公正的

参考例句：

• This is an equitable solution to the dispute. 这是对该项争议的公正解决。
• Paying a person what he has earned is equitable. 酬其应得,乃公平之事。

5 arid   

adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的

参考例句：

• These trees will shield off arid winds and protect the fields.这些树能挡住旱风,保护农田。
• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。

6 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

7 communal   

adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的

参考例句：

• There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.在楼梯平台上有一处公共卫生间供4套公寓使用。
• The toilets and other communal facilities were in a shocking state.厕所及其他公共设施的状况极其糟糕。

8 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

9 equitably   

公平地

参考例句：

• We should equitably assess historical figures. 我们应该公正地评价历史人物。
• Land was more equitably distributed. 土地得到更公平合理的分配。

10 mediating   

调停，调解，斡旋( mediate的现在分词 )； 居间促成； 影响…的发生； 使…可能发生

参考例句：

• So many factors are mediating. 如此众多的因素在起作用。
• The contrast in mediating noted in the sitting room. 客厅中注重了调和中的对比。

11 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。

12 elusive   

adj.难以表达(捉摸)的；令人困惑的；逃避的

参考例句：

• Try to catch the elusive charm of the original in translation.翻译时设法把握住原文中难以捉摸的风韵。
• Interpol have searched all the corners of the earth for the elusive hijackers.国际刑警组织已在世界各地搜查在逃的飞机劫持者。

13 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。

14 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

16 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

17 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

18 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

19 undertaking   

n.保证，许诺，事业

参考例句：

• He gave her an undertaking that he would pay the money back with in a year.他向她做了一年内还钱的保证。
• He is too timid to venture upon an undertaking.他太胆小，不敢从事任何事业。

20 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

21 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。