VOA标准英语2015--土耳其东南部的暴力冲突震撼世俗

 

Secular¹, Religious Kurds Face Off in Southeast Turkey 土耳其东南部的暴力冲突震撼世俗

DIYARBAKIR—

Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast has been rocked by violence between secular Kurdish nationalists and their more pious² compatriots. The region's main city, Diyarbakir, has become the epicenter of bloody⁴ clashes between the two groups.

Last October, Diyarbakir was rocked by some of worst violence in decades. The clashes were sparked by Kurdish nationalists who were angry at the Turkish government for not supporting Kurdish fighters under siege by Islamic State (IS) militants⁶ in the nearby Syrian city of Kobani.  But much of the anger was also aimed at religious Kurds suspected of supporting Islamic State militants.

Yusuf Er was delivering meat with friends during the Islamic festival of Eid to local needy⁷ people for a charity connected to the Islamist Huda Par⁵ party. He says one hundred or more people stopped them and that there was a voice from behind accusing them of being associated with IS. Then, he says, the crowd started attacking them with stones and sticks without giving them a chance to explain that they had nothing to do with IS.

“I heard my friends' screams of pain. I understood they were being shot,” recalls Yusuf.

Yusuf survived despite himself being shot twice and stabbed 17 times. His four friends died.

But Mehmet Bahattin of the Islamist Huda Par party denies any links to IS, claiming it is the victim of a power grab.

Bahattin says this is a serious and unfair accusation⁸ without any proof. He says actually the Kurdish rebel group PKK (Kurdistan Worker’s Party), which does not allow any political establishment other than itself in the region, is aiming to judge and eventually eliminate Huda Par by accusing it of affiliation⁹ with IS, which, he adds, has a negative place in the mind of Kurdish people. “This was their goal,” he says.

‘This is not Islam’

The staunchly secular PKK has been fighting the Turkish state for more than four decades for greater minority rights. But, for now, tentative peace talks are continuing with the government.

The Democratic Society Congress or DTK is linked to the PKK. Hilmi Aydogdu, co-chair of the DTK, suspects Huda Par of being connected to a shadowy group used by the state in the war against the rebels.

He says its roots lie in the past, in the 1990s. In the memory of Kurds, the violence and massacres¹⁰ of the '90s are still very strong, says he.

“At that time Huda Par… committed serious massacres against Kurdish patriots³, religious leaders and anyone who was against them,” said Aydogdu, adding that even today there is still potential ground for more confrontations¹¹ and provocations¹².

DTK accuses Huda Par of collaborating¹³ with the state to kill dozens of its supporters during last October’s unrest. Mahsum Coban was one of them. He was part of a convoy¹⁴ protesting IS when his car was stopped by gunmen near Huda Par's office. His family and pro-Kurdish parties claim Huda-Par supporters shot him.

His mother, Neslihan Coban, just wants an end to religion being used for political ends.

She says her children all read the whole of Quran.

“I made them read it all. Mahsum used to read every night, share prayers on his Facebook page. We are Muslims. Nobody should use religion for political ends. This is not Islam,” said Coban.

For now, calm has returned to Diyarbakir's streets. But observers warn that with clashes between Kurdish nationalists and Huda Par supporters occurring in nearby Turkish towns, tensions remain in the city, along with feelings of unfinished business.

1 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

2 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 patriots   

爱国者，爱国主义者( patriot的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Abraham Lincoln was a fine type of the American patriots. 亚伯拉罕·林肯是美国爱国者的优秀典型。
• These patriots would fight to death before they surrendered. 这些爱国者宁愿战斗到死，也不愿投降。

4 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

5 par   

n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的

参考例句：

• Sales of nylon have been below par in recent years.近年来尼龙织品的销售额一直不及以往。
• I don't think his ability is on a par with yours.我认为他的能力不能与你的能力相媲美。

6 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。

7 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

8 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

9 affiliation   

n.联系，联合

参考例句：

• There is no affiliation between our organization and theirs,even though our names are similar.尽管两个组织的名称相似，但我们之间并没有关系。
• The kidnappers had no affiliation with any militant group.这些绑架者与任何军事组织都没有紧密联系。

10 massacres   

大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 )； 惨败

参考例句：

• The time is past for guns and killings and massacres. 动不动就用枪、动不动就杀、大规模屠杀的时代已经过去了。 来自教父部分
• Numberless recent massacres were still vivid in their recollection. 近来那些不可胜数的屠杀，在他们的头脑中记忆犹新。

11 confrontations   

n.对抗，对抗的事物( confrontation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At times, this potential has escalated into actual confrontations. 有时，这一矛盾升级为实际的对抗。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• These confrontations and uncertainties were bing played out for the first time on a global scale. 所有这一切对抗和不稳定，第一次在全球范围内得到充分的表演。 来自辞典例句

12 provocations   

n.挑衅( provocation的名词复数 )；激怒；刺激；愤怒的原因

参考例句：

• We cannot ignore such provocations. 对于这种挑衅，我们不能置之不理。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• They must immediately cease all their provocations. 他们必须停止一切挑衅。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 collaborating   

合作( collaborate的现在分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• Joe is collaborating on the work with a friend. 乔正与一位朋友合作做那件工作。
• He was not only learning from but also collaborating with Joseph Thomson. 他不仅是在跟约瑟福？汤姆逊学习，而且也是在和他合作。

14 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。