VOA标准英语2014--穆斯林对女生绑架的讨论

 

Muslim Reaction to Schoolgirl Abductions Debated 穆斯林对女生绑架的讨论

WASHINGTON — The faces of young girls held captive by Islamist militants¹ have fueled anger and shock around the world and raised questions about why more Muslim leaders have not come forward in their defense².

The CEO of the Cairo-based Karama group, Hibaaq Osman, is among those who feel there has not been enough "noise" in the Muslim community.

"There are absolutely statements here and there, but in terms of really up in arms and going into the streets, we have not seen that,” Osman said.

Her comments came after Boko Haram militants released a video of more than 100 of the captured girls, looking sad and frightened.

She said this could be because the victims are girls who were trying to get an education.

"If we look at women's rights, in general, there is not only just in the Islamic communities, but in many communities, you have major problems with women's rights and people react more slower," Osman said.

During the past five years, Boko Haram has terrorized Nigeria with dozens of brutal³, deadly attacks. The group says it is fighting to establish strict Islamic law the country's north.

The international community had been relatively⁴ silent about the attacks, said Ibrahim Hooper of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. But, he added, that's changed.

"The kidnapping of the schoolgirls really woke up the world and woke up ... the Muslim community, as well, to what's going on there," Hooper said.

The girls' plight⁵ has spurred a string of protests. Hooper said Muslims are among those who have expressed outrage⁶.

"You have seen Muslim scholars, Muslim organizations and institutions around the world condemning⁷ Boko Haram and its actions,” Hooper said.

Boko Haram claims to embrace Islam but Hooper said the militants are trying to "hijack⁸" the religion to advance their cause.

1 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

4 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

5 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

6 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

7 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》

8 hijack   

v.劫持，劫机，拦路抢劫

参考例句：

• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。
• The hijack take place just after the plane take off.劫持是飞机刚起飞后发生的。