VOA常速英语2008年-UN Says Humanitarian Crisis at Risk of Escalati

By Margaret Besheer
United Nations
25 February 2008

The U.N. humanitarian¹ chief warns that if Kenya's political crisis is not quickly resolved, the risk of fresh violence, more displacement², and further polarization of society will be high. From U.N. headquarters in New York, VOA's Margaret Besheer reports that John Holmes told the Security Council humanitarian issues are serious and likely to last for months, even if there is a rapid political settlement.

John Holmes briefed the council on his trip to Kenya earlier this month. He says more than 270,000 people from six of Kenya's eight provinces remain in about 200 camps and sites.

"An estimated 500,000 altogether continue to require emergency assistance with shelter, water, food and medical care," said Holmes. "Some 12,000 Kenyan refugees in Uganda are also being looked after."

Holmes says most of the basic humanitarian needs at these camps and sites have been met. He credited the Kenyan Red Cross Society with leading the response, after violence erupted in the aftermath of the December 27 presidential election.

He says the displaced will in many cases not be able to go home quickly, requiring the United Nations to remain engaged for some months to come on the humanitarian front.

"Indeed, we are planning on the sort of the time horizon of at least a year, for the moment," said Holmes. "I also underlined that even if there was a rapid political settlement, some of the issues, which lie behind the explosion of violence after the elections, are very deep rooted, and they are to do with questions of land, and poverty and economic inequality and questions of representation in government. They will need to be addressed."

Holmes also told the council that the crisis is having an impact on the region, particularly in terms of imports and the transport of humanitarian assistance to other countries.

Kenya has long been East Africa's main transport hub, and Holmes says instability and violence in Kenya has affected³ shipments reaching Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as parts of Tanzania and Southern Sudan.

The U.N. humanitarian chief says the scale of the crisis in Kenya remains⁴ significant, and if political negotiations⁵ fail, the humanitarian consequences of renewed violence could also be very severe. He says the United Nations is preparing contingency⁶ plans should that happen.

1 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。

2 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。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

5 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

6 contingency   

n.意外事件，可能性

参考例句：

• We should be prepared for any contingency.我们应该对任何应急情况有所准备。
• A fire in our warehouse was a contingency that we had not expected.库房的一场大火是我们始料未及的。