2006年VOA标准英语-East Timor Rebels Surrender Weapons, Government

By Chad Bouchard
Jakarta
05 July 2006
 
 
An Australian soldier salutes¹ after receiving an M-16 assault rifle handed over by a rebel soldier in Gleno, East Timor
  
Rebel soldiers in East Timor have turned in a handful of weapons to international peacekeepers, raising hopes for an end to months of violence. The move comes amid continuing political tensions as the tiny nation searches for new leadership.

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The handful of rebel soldiers had been holed up in the mountains south of East Timor's capital, Dili, since March. They were among 600 soldiers fired from the young country's armed forces, an action that sparked widespread violence, the resignation of the prime minister and international intervention².

On Wednesday, they surrendered automatic rifles and other firearms to Australian peacekeeping troops on a football field in the mountains.

Loiz Veira, the chief of mission in East Timor for the International Organization for Migration³, says recent violence has created widespread distrust and unresolved conflict that may take years to address. But he adds that as weapons are taken off the streets, the country inches closer to peace.

"Because the weapons are out of circulation, obviously, but also because of the message it sends, you know it sends a message of renewed hope and confidence," he said. "Whether we're out of hot water or not depends I think largely on the response and the ability of the government and the international community to be able to adequately respond to them - particularly through much more long-term thinking and much more long term intervention."

Street fighting among rival gangs has killed at least 30 people and displaced about 150,000 more, many still camped outside the capital in fear of fresh violence.

Veira says displaced people living in the camps are concerned that the longer the political conflict goes unresolved the harder it will be to find a solution.

The government has suffered a lack of leadership since Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri stepped down on June 26 amid accusations⁴ he helped to arm militia⁵ to assassinate⁶ his political opponents. He has denied the allegations, and ignored a court summons to answer those charges.

Xanana Gusmao (file photo)   
  
His political rival, President Xanana Gusmao, has yet to announce an interim⁷ successor or cabinet, but has said elections scheduled for early next year could be brought forward.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos Horta has been named as a possible candidate for prime minister, though he's not a member of the ruling party, Fretilin. At a meeting with Asian investors⁸ Wednesday, he said he would be ready to take the job, but indicated a new government could be weeks away.

"We have decided⁹ to wait in the formation of a new government in a week or two whenever there's a new cabinet," he said.

Fretilin has offered a list of four candidates for prime minister for President Gusmao to consider and threatens to block the country's budget if he does not choose from that list.

1 salutes   

n.致敬，欢迎，敬礼( salute的名词复数 )v.欢迎，致敬( salute的第三人称单数 )；赞扬，赞颂

参考例句：

• Poulengey salutes, and stands at the door awaiting orders. 波仑日行礼，站在门口听侯命令。 来自辞典例句
• A giant of the world salutes you. 一位世界的伟人向你敬礼呢。 来自辞典例句

2 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

3 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

4 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

5 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

6 assassinate   

vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤

参考例句：

• The police exposed a criminal plot to assassinate the president.警方侦破了一个行刺总统的阴谋。
• A plot to assassinate the banker has been uncovered by the police.暗杀银行家的密谋被警方侦破了。

7 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

8 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

9 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。