2006年VOA标准英语-UN Struggles to Enforce Diamond Ban in Ivory Co

By Franz Wild
Seguela, Ivory Coast
22 December 2006

sifter1 to find a diamond stone (File)" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070514/0937370.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Men look into their sifter to find a diamond stone (File)

Diamonds coming out of the rebel-held north of Ivory Coast are the only ones in the world the United Nations still describes as conflict diamonds. The U.N. is still unable to stop a steady stream of illicit² diamonds making it onto the world market, despite an embargo³. Franz Wild visited Séguéla for VOA, where most of Ivory Coast's diamonds are mined.

In the protection of his house, a dealer⁴ opens a twist of paper revealing seven diamonds, all the size of peppercorns. Each will eventually fetch thousands of dollars when cut and sold on the world market.

In Séguéla, the small and dusty town, which produces the majority of Ivory Coast's diamonds, few will give their names. They fear trouble with the rebel New Forces who control the north of Ivory Coast and with it its diamond industry.

The New Forces have occupied the north since a 2002-2003 civil war. Diamonds are only found in the north. Last year, the U.N. Security Council imposed a diamond embargo on Ivory Coast, after its experts found the New Forces were profiting from the trade.

In recent reports, a group of U.N. experts who studied the trade says up to $23 million  worth are smuggled⁵ out of rebel-held Ivory Coast annually⁶, and the rebels are controlling the trade.

The group's head, Alex Vines, says they have a clear idea of who is responsible for breaching⁸ the ban.

"The result of the field research was to show that Ivorian diamonds are smuggling⁹ to neighboring states, particularly to Mali, but also to Ghana where they enter the official Ghanaian certification scheme and then into the international market, both Antwerp and the United Arab Emirates," he said.

The Bobi Dyke¹⁰, is the largest open mine in the Séguéla area. The 14 meters deep wound in the earth runs on for a few hundred meters. Workers who are paid $5.00 a week shovel¹¹ earth. They have no machines more sophisticated than the little pumps they use to get rid of the water in the holes they dig. When they reach a new layer of gravel¹², they wash it in the river, under the watchful¹³ gaze of rebel soldiers, who see each diamond coming out.

Like the rebel leadership, most in the industry deny the New Forces do anything more than provide security for the diamond miners.

Issiaka Dosso has eight men working on his hole. He says, the U.N. does not understand what is going on here. He says, there are wars of arms and there are wars of ideas. This is part of a war of ideas against the rebels. He denies diamonds finance the rebellion.

For Dosso the ban has just meant dealers¹⁴ pay less. In the eight months his men have been working that hole, he says he has not made any profit yet. He insists, diamond mining is not as lucrative¹⁵ as people think.

But a digger in his mid-teens says he has seen rebel soldiers simply pocket diamonds as they are discovered. He says, they take some diamonds just like that without paying anything. Then, he says, they go and sell them in Séguéla. "I'm mad," he says, "because they steal our diamonds."

And Dosso confirms that the dealers send the diamonds abroad to sell them. He says, if they do not leave Ivory Coast people would not be able to sell them. There are some dealers, who are, say, Malian, who used to be here, but are now in Mali and are still buying diamonds through agents.

In town, everyone talks about Sekou Sidibe being the biggest dealer in Séguéla. Little Sekou, as they call him, has a rebel soldier with him at his office. He will not be recorded and denies still dealing¹⁶ in diamonds, even though the U.N. experts name him in their reports.

All he will say is that they were always dealing in diamonds and it does not make sense for them to stop their trade, just because two groups started fighting each other. He insists they have nothing to do with the war, and they are just making a living.

For the diamond industry, the increased attention is not welcome during its peak pre-Christmas sales period. A recent Hollywood release called Blood Diamond stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a diamond smuggler¹⁷ during Sierra Leone's bloody¹⁸ 1991 to 2002 civil war, which was largely funded through diamond money.

Ivory Coast is considered the last spot in the world, which still produces conflict diamonds. The U.N. Security Council now has the option of imposing¹⁹ sanctions on any individuals considered in breach⁷ of the ban.

1 sifter   

n.（用于筛撒粉状食物的）筛具，撒粉器；滤器；罗圈；罗

参考例句：

• She sifted thistles through her thistle-sifter. 她用蓟筛筛蓟。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This paper deals with a nitempering process of sifter mesh. 研究了一种筛片的软氮化工艺。 来自互联网

2 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

3 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

4 dealer   

n.商人，贩子

参考例句：

• The dealer spent hours bargaining for the painting.那个商人为购买那幅画花了几个小时讨价还价。
• The dealer reduced the price for cash down.这家商店对付现金的人减价优惠。

5 smuggled   

水货

参考例句：

• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Those smuggled goods have been detained by the port office. 那些走私货物被港务局扣押了。 来自互联网

6 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

7 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

8 breaching   

攻破( breach的过去式 )； 破坏，违反

参考例句：

• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。
• Third, an agency can abuse its discretion by breaching certain principles of judge-made law. 第三，行政机关会因违反某些法官制定的法律原则而构成滥用自由裁量权。

9 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

10 dyke   

n.堤，水坝，排水沟

参考例句：

• If one sheep leap over the dyke,all the rest will follow.一只羊跳过沟，其余的羊也跟着跳。
• One ant-hole may cause the collapse of a thousand-li dyke.千里长堤，溃于蚁穴。

11 shovel   

n.铁锨，铲子，一铲之量；v.铲，铲出

参考例句：

• He was working with a pick and shovel.他在用镐和铲干活。
• He seized a shovel and set to.他拿起一把铲就干上了。

12 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

13 watchful   

adj.注意的，警惕的

参考例句：

• The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
• It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。

14 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

15 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

16 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

17 smuggler   

n.走私者

参考例句：

• The smuggler is in prison tonight, awaiting extradition to Britain. 这名走私犯今晚在监狱，等待引渡到英国。
• The smuggler was finally obliged to inform against his boss. 那个走私犯最后不得不告发他的首领。

18 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。

19 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。