2006年VOA标准英语-Regional Ministers Discuss Stabilizing Somalia,

By Cathy Majtenyi
Nairobi
13 June 2006

Somalia President Abdullahi Yusuf, center, leave a meeting of IGAD, June 13, 2006 in Nairobi, Kenya  
  
In east Africa, members of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) are discussing ways of punishing warlords involved in recent fighting in the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

---------------------------------

Kenya Foreign Affairs Minister Raphael Tuju told the IGAD opening session that his country has taken strict measures against warlords causing havoc¹ in neighboring Somalia.

"We, as Kenya, have decided² that we are not going to allow anybody to operate from this country and be involved at the same time in the conflict in Mogadishu or the conflict in Somalia," he said.  "We will not allow them to use our banks, we will not allow them to use our airports, we will not allow them to bring their kids to school here, we will not allow them to enjoy the facilities in our five-star hotels when they create hell in their own country."

In recent months, Mogadishu has been rocked by fierce fighting between militias³ loyal to the Islamic courts and a group of warlords, and militias comprising the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counterterrorism.

More than 300 people were killed and more than 1,000 injured during the conflict.  Recently, the Islamic courts claimed to have taken control of Mogadishu.

Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi recently fired four ministers - Mohamed Afrah Qanyare, Musa Sudi Yalahow, Issa Botan Alin, and Omar Muhamoud Finnish - for their association with groups involved in the fighting.

The Kenyan government then banned them and other warlords and their associates from entering Kenya, deporting⁴ a suspected warlord.

On the sidelines of the IGAD meeting, diplomats⁵ told reporters that it is highly likely that the foreign affairs ministers from the seven-nation Inter-Governmental Authority on Development would follow Kenya's lead and ban warlords from traveling around East Africa and freeze their financial assets.

Also high on the foreign affairs ministers' agenda was a call to assist Somalia's transitional government to set up a national army and to deploy⁶ a regional peacekeeping mission into Somalia as ways of stabilizing⁷ the war-torn country.

EU Commissioner⁸ for Development and Humanitarian⁹ Affairs Louis Michel called for the United Nations to lift its 14-year arms embargo¹⁰ against Somalia so that firearms and military equipment could be delivered into the country for the army and peacekeeping mission.

Michel urged the international community to work with the transitional Somali government and not other factions¹¹.

"We need to adequately support the transitional federal institutions politically, to engage with and stabilize¹² Mogadishu and the rest of the country," he said.  "We need to provide vital capacity building and security sector¹³ support for the institutions to function."

Prime Minister Gedi told the gathering¹⁴ that his government's top priority is to stabilize the capital and other areas.

The Somali parliament is debating whether to allow peacekeepers from the regional body to enter Somalia.  The Islamic Courts, which appear to be controlling the capital, says it opposes the use of foreign peacekeepers.

Since civil war broke out in 1991, clan-based factions have controlled different parts of the country, with no central authority to provide law and order and even basic services to the population.

A transitional Somali parliament was formed in Kenya more than a year ago under an international peace process

1 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

4 deporting   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的现在分词 )；举止

参考例句：

5 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

7 stabilizing   

n.稳定化处理[退火]v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The disulfide bridges might then be viewed primarily as stabilizing components. 二硫桥可以被看作是初级的稳定因素。 来自辞典例句
• These stabilizing design changes are usually not desirable for steady-state operation. 这些增加稳定性的设计改变通常不太符合稳态工作的要求。 来自辞典例句

8 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

9 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

10 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。

11 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

12 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。