VOA常速英语2008年-Trouble Builds Behind Scenes in Wake of Kenya P

By Alisha Ryu
Eldama Ravine, Kenya
24 March 2008

Despite political efforts in the Kenyan capital Nairobi to unite the country after two months of post-election violence blamed largely on tribal¹ militias³, new reports suggest the recruitment and build-up of these militias continues in some communities. As VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu reports from Kenya's conflict-torn region of north Rift⁴ Valley, there is growing fear that if rival politicians in Nairobi fail to quickly form a broad-based government and institute genuine reforms, tribal militias could strengthen and cause greater unrest.

For the past two months, 53 year-old Joseph Macharia Nyaga has been begging the Kenyan government to move him and dozens of others out of an internally-displaced camp in the north Rift Valley town of Eldama Ravine.

Nyaga says the camp does not have adequate security to protect the people here from the daily death threats they are still receiving from hostile neighbors.

"In this area, there is no peace," he said.

The displaced people here are all ethnic⁵ Kikuyus, who were chased out of their homes in Eldama Ravine in January by a mob of armed ethnic Kalenjin youths.

The violence followed the December re-election of ethnic Kikuyu President Mwai Kibaki, who was widely accused of stealing the election from his ethnic Luo challenger, Raila Odinga. Raila had received overwhelming support from the Luos and many other non-Kikuyu tribes, including the Kalenjin, in the election.

In the following two months, several hundred mostly ethnic Kikuyu people were killed and tens of thousands of others were forced to flee the Rift Valley.

Another displaced Kikuyu man at the camp, who identifies himself only as Vincent, says the youths who attacked him were members of a militia² made up of Kalenjin warriors⁶. He says the warriors were paid by politicians and acted on the orders of Kalenjin elders, who told them to evict⁷ entire communities of ethnic Kikuyus from the Rift Valley.

"These people are intimidating⁸ us. They are telling us, if we return, they are going to kill us," said Vincent.

Since Kenya gained independence from Britain in 1963, ethnic Kalenjins have felt aggrieved⁹ by the forced, and often times illegal, settlement of non-indigenous people in the Rift Valley, a region ethnic Kalenjins regard as their ancestral land.

A senior Kalenjin community leader in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret, Issace Maiyo, says the failure of the current President Mwai Kibaki to enact¹⁰ land reforms convinced many ethnic Kalenjins that their grievances¹¹ would not be addressed under a government led by Mr. Kibaki, and they vented¹² their frustration¹³ on ethnic Kikuyus when it appeared the president's Kikuyu-dominated party had manipulated the election result.

Maiyo vehemently¹⁴ denies reports that Kalenjin politicians and elders purposely formed militia groups to carry out the attacks.

"That is a total lie. In the Rift Valley, we do not have any militia group. We are born as warriors," said Maiyo.

But East Africa representative for Human Rights Watch group, Ben Rawlence, notes that young warriors in pastoralist communities such as the Kalenjin, the Maasai, and the Pokot, are often mobilized as armed groups, usually to defend their communities' rights or to protect their communities from danger.

Rawlence says he believes such mobilization, especially among the Kalenjin, has not only taken place, but is now accelerating.

"There is recruitment and vigilantism on the rise and that would appear to be because they are not getting what they need from the government. They certainly do not think the government can be impartial," said Rawlence. "I think what we will probably see is that you will get a whole range of different actors, where violence becomes a very cheap and efficient way of getting anything you want. Whether that is justice or political office, you [will] see violence used as a strategy."

VOA sources in the Rift Valley say some Kalenjin warriors have begun trading in their traditional bows and arrows and spears for automatic weapons, smuggled¹⁵ in from southern Sudan and northern Uganda.

Meanwhile, a banned militant¹⁶ ethnic Kikuyu group called the Mungiki is reportedly recruiting, training, and arming ethnic Kikuyus in internally-displaced camps in various parts of the country.

The Mungiki emerged in the late 1980s as a secret, religious sect¹⁷, but has evolved over the years into a ruthless criminal organization. During the post-election turmoil¹⁸, Human Rights Watch and other groups say ethnic Kikuyu politicians and businessmen paid hundred of machete-wielding Mungiki members to carry out reprisal¹⁹ attacks against ethnic Kalenjins and ethnic Luos in Rift Valley towns and to conduct ethnic cleansing²⁰ in areas deemed to be Kikuyu territory.

Kenya Human Rights Watch says it has received credible²¹ reports that the Mungiki may have access to guns kept in state armories²².

Ben Rawlence of Human Rights Watch says he fears it may not be a question of if but when ethnic violence in Kenya will flare²³ up again.

"In fact, in terms of conflict indicators²⁴ and so on, Kenya is actually in a far worse position now then it was before the elections because the country has become so segregated²⁵, because mistrust has risen, and because of a collapse²⁶ in state authority," added Rawlence.

The director of the Anglican Church of Kenya's Democracy and Governance Project in Eldoret, Reverend Maritim Rirei, says the future of the Rift Valley and the rest of the country now hinges on the progress of talks to form a coalition²⁷ government that can quickly enact much-needed reforms.

"This thing is going to end when we begin resolving the issues of resources, land, and equitable²⁸ distribution of wealth," said Rirei. "It is also going to end when people on the ground begin serious discussions and when a new leadership begins to make people feel they are Kenyans wherever they are. If the talks do not go well, we will be back to violence."

On Sunday, top religious leaders in Kenya issued a scathing²⁹ criticism of members of parliament on both sides, saying the politician were spending more time lobbying for ministerial positions than looking for ways to bring Kenya back on its feet.

1 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

2 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。

3 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

4 rift   

n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入

参考例句：

• He was anxious to mend the rift between the two men.他急于弥合这两个人之间的裂痕。
• The sun appeared through a rift in the clouds.太阳从云层间隙中冒出来。

5 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。

6 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

7 evict   

vt.驱逐，赶出，撵走

参考例句：

• The lessor can evict the lessee for failure to pay rent.出租人可驱逐不付租金的承租人。
• The government always says it's for the greater good when they evict farmers from their land.当政府把农民从他们的土地赶出去的时候，总是号称是为了更大众的利益。

8 intimidating   

vt.恐吓，威胁( intimidate的现在分词)

参考例句：

• They were accused of intimidating people into voting for them. 他们被控胁迫选民投他们的票。
• This kind of questioning can be very intimidating to children. 这种问话的方式可能让孩子们非常害怕。

9 aggrieved   

adj.愤愤不平的，受委屈的；悲痛的；（在合法权利方面）受侵害的v.令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式)；令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• He felt aggrieved at not being chosen for the team. 他因没被选到队里感到愤愤不平。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She is the aggrieved person whose fiance&1& did not show up for their wedding. 她很委屈，她的未婚夫未出现在他们的婚礼上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

11 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 vented   

表达，发泄（感情，尤指愤怒）( vent的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He vented his frustration on his wife. 他受到挫折却把气发泄到妻子身上。
• He vented his anger on his secretary. 他朝秘书发泄怒气。

13 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

14 vehemently   

adv. 热烈地

参考例句：

• He argued with his wife so vehemently that he talked himself hoarse. 他和妻子争论得很激烈，以致讲话的声音都嘶哑了。
• Both women vehemently deny the charges against them. 两名妇女都激烈地否认了对她们的指控。

15 smuggled   

水货

参考例句：

• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Those smuggled goods have been detained by the port office. 那些走私货物被港务局扣押了。 来自互联网

16 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

17 sect   

n.派别，宗教，学派，派系

参考例句：

• When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
• Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。

18 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。

19 reprisal   

n.报复，报仇，报复性劫掠

参考例句：

• There is no political alternative but a big reprisal.政治上没有旁的选择只能是大规模报复。
• They bombed civilian targets in reprisal.他们炮轰平民目标作为报复。

20 cleansing   

n. 净化(垃圾) adj. 清洁用的 动词cleanse的现在分词

参考例句：

• medicated cleansing pads for sensitive skin 敏感皮肤药物清洗棉
• Soap is not the only cleansing agent. 肥皂并不是唯一的清洁剂。

21 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

22 armories   

n.纹章( armory的名词复数 )；纹章学；兵工厂；军械库

参考例句：

• The armories were important in the World War II. 兵工厂在二战中是很重要的。 来自互联网
• Can only be used to open the door, such as churches and armories Colored door. 只能用来开门，例如血色的教堂和军械库的门。 来自互联网

23 flare   

v.闪耀，闪烁；n.潮红；突发

参考例句：

• The match gave a flare.火柴发出闪光。
• You need not flare up merely because I mentioned your work.你大可不必因为我提到你的工作就动怒。

24 indicators   

（仪器上显示温度、压力、耗油量等的）指针( indicator的名词复数 )； 指示物； （车辆上的）转弯指示灯； 指示信号

参考例句：

• The economic indicators are better than expected. 经济指标比预期的好。
• It is still difficult to develop indicators for many concepts used in social science. 为社会科学领域的许多概念确立一个指标仍然很难。

25 segregated   

分开的； 被隔离的

参考例句：

• a culture in which women are segregated from men 妇女受到隔离歧视的文化
• The doctor segregated the child sick with scarlet fever. 大夫把患猩红热的孩子隔离起来。

26 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

27 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

28 equitable   

adj.公平的；公正的

参考例句：

• This is an equitable solution to the dispute. 这是对该项争议的公正解决。
• Paying a person what he has earned is equitable. 酬其应得,乃公平之事。

29 scathing   

adj.（言词、文章）严厉的，尖刻的；不留情的adv.严厉地，尖刻地v.伤害，损害（尤指使之枯萎）( scathe的现在分词)

参考例句：

• a scathing attack on the new management 针对新的管理层的猛烈抨击
• Her speech was a scathing indictment of the government's record on crime. 她的演讲强烈指责了政府在犯罪问题上的表现。 来自《简明英汉词典》