voa标准英语2008年-Afghan Government Struggles to Resettle Returne

The chief of the United Nations refugee agency is in Afghanistan to highlight the difficulty in resettling the millions of Afghans displaced by decades of war. VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from Kabul.

In a makeshift camp north of Kabul about 20 families who returned to Afghanistan in 2003 are still searching for a permanent home.

They are originally from Parwan province, north of Kabul, but after living for 10 years in Pakistan, they could not reclaim¹ the land they abandoned. They lived in temporary camps for several years. In 2006, the government resettled them on land about 40 kilometers north of the capital.
　

Returned Afghan refugees listen to a speech by the UN High Commissioner2 for Refugees at a refugee camp east of Kabul, 17 Nov 2008

Zamary said his family tried to live there last year, but decided³ to return to Kabul to survive this winter.

He said it was difficult to survive because it was so cold and there isn't any work.

Another woman said her children now beg for food in the streets of Kabul, but it is easier than living in the area where the government resettled them.

She said "in the government houses we didn't have any wood to heat the rooms and we didn't have jobs, so we returned to Kabul for this winter."

About five million Afghans have returned home since 2001. Despite record levels of violence, 280,000 more are expected to return this year.
　

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Guterres (R) talks with displaced Afghan women at a camp in Kabul, 18 Nov 2008

The head of the United Nations Refugee Agency, Antonio Guterres, said about 18 percent of returnees have been unable to go back to their homes because of insecurity.

"Nobody wants the refugees that come back to become displaced inside their own country, or to need to migrate and sometimes migrate irregularly with lots of risks in relation to their future," he said.

The United Nations estimates about three million Afghans are still living in Iran and Pakistan. In recent years, the flow of returnees has slowed as violence has worsened.

Guterres says the Iranian government has pledged to not forcibly return recognized Afghan refugees. But he says many Afghans have recently fled insecurity and poor economic prospects⁴ by crossing into Iran. He said it is much more difficult to protect the new arrivals, who lack proper documentation

1 reclaim   

v.要求归还，收回；开垦

参考例句：

• I have tried to reclaim my money without success.我没能把钱取回来。
• You must present this ticket when you reclaim your luggage.当你要取回行李时，必须出示这张票子。

2 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。

3 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。

4 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。