VOA常速英语2007年-Congo Fighting Threatens 15,000 Displaced Civil

By Selah Hennessy
Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo
07 December 2007

Government forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo are making military gains against rebel fighters in the east. But military victories are pushing combat north, towards displacement¹ camps that hold thousands of civilians². The U.N. is calling it an emergency situation, but no plan has yet been announced to protect the displaced people. Selah Hennessy reports for VOA from Goma.

General Babacar Gaye is the force commander of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the DRC.

He says government troops are pushing the rebels north, towards a town called Kirolirwe.

"There is a need for the Congolese authorities to warn the population that they need to leave this area as soon as possible because unfortunately there will be operation I'm afraid in Kirolirwe," said Gaye.

He says the military is still working with humanitarian³ organizations, and the population itself, to decide where the civilians should go.

"It is not decided⁴ yet where they are going to move but the best solution would be for them to have a safe haven⁵ for them somewhere-maybe towards east or towards west or towards south, rather than towards north," said Gaye.

Around 40,000 civilians live in Kirolirwe, including around 15,000 internally displaced people.

U.N. spokesman Michel Bonnardeaux says the majority of the displaced are ethnic⁶ Tutsis.

Rebel leader Nkunda says he is fighting to protect ethnic Tutsis from ethnic Hutu former rebels, who he says are supported by the Congolese government.

Bonnardeaux says displaced Tutsis are inclined to support Nkunda rather than the national army. He adds there have been reports of Nkunda's forces recruiting in displacement camps.

There have also been reports of the rebel leader using the population as a human shield.

Meanwhile, food delivery to displacement camps is suspended, after the UN World Food Program this week blocked aid delivery due to insecurity in the region.

Aya Shneerson, director of the World Food Program in the provinces of North and South Kivu, says she hopes some deliveries will begin again soon. But, she says, with displaced people again forced to flee their camps, delivering aid will be even harder.

1 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

2 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

3 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。

4 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。

5 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

6 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。