2006年VOA标准英语-UN Peacekeepers Freed, Journalist Killed in Con

By David Lewis
Kinshasa
09 July 2006

Congolese militia¹ fighters released Saturday the five remaining Nepalese U.N. peacekeepers they have been holding since late May, U.N. officials have said. In other developments, gunmen killed a journalist who was a vocal² critic of Congos government.

Nearly six weeks after they were seized during a gun battle in eastern Congo, five Nepalese U.N. peacekeepers were released Saturday by the militia group that had been holding them hostage.

As evening fell, U.N. officials said members of the peacekeeping mission and representatives from the local community had picked up the soldiers, and were making their way back to a base in the lawless Ituri district.

Two weeks ago, two of the group of seven initially³ seized were released by the gunmen, who had issued a range of demands, including thousands of dollars in cash and the release of militia fighters arrested by the government.

The hostage crisis has highlighted the violence and chaos⁴ in Congos east, as the vast African nation readies itself for elections later this month.

The July 30 polls should be the first free and fair election in over four decades, and are meant to draw a line under the last war, a 1998-2003 conflict that has killed some four-million people.

However, amongst other obstacles, the build-up to the poll has been marred⁵ by attacks on journalists.

Early Saturday, unidentified gunmen killed a Congolese journalist, deepening concerns about freedom of the press and how free and fair the polls really will be.

The shooting comes just a day after donors⁶ funding Congos peace process told the government to ensure that candidates running for posts in the post-war administration, and journalists covering the campaign, were protected.

It is hoped that this months poll will help provide the war-ravaged nation with a fresh start after decades of turmoil⁷.

1 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。

2 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

3 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

4 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

5 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

6 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。