VOA标准英语2009年-African States to Sign Declaration on Forc

By Peter Heinlein
Kampala, Uganda
22 October 2009

 
U.N. High Commissioner¹ for Refugees Antonio Guterres at camp for Darfur refugees (file phot
At least 46 African nations are expected to sign a declaration Friday, obligating governments and armed rebel groups to protect and assist people uprooted² from their homes by war. Details of the new law on the Rights of Internally Displaced Persons will be signed at a special African Union summit in Kampala, Uganda

Its formal name is the Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa. But it will known as simply as the Kampala Declaration.

It sets out the rights of civilians³ in conflict zones, and makes clear the legal obligations of governments and armed rebel groups to protect and assist non-combatants.

After years of negotiations⁴, its significance is being marked by a special African Union summit. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, is here for the signing ceremony. So are U.N. emergency relief agency chief John Holmes and International Red Cross, or ICRC, President Jacob Kellenberger.

Kellenberger says many of Africa's top leaders are conspicuously⁵ absent. "The number of heads of state who have been here has been very limited indeed. Leave the interpretation⁶ to others, but that's a fact," he said.

Aside from the host, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, only five top leaders are at the summit. Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe is here as are Zambia's President Rupiah Banda and Somalia's President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. Ricardo Mangue Obama Nfubea, the prime minister of Equatorial Guinea, and Mohamed Abdelaziz, the president of the territory of Western Sahara round out the group.

Western Sahara is not recognized as a state by the United Nations, but it is a member of the African Union.

But Africa's Commissioner for Political Affairs Julia Dolly Joiner says representatives of almost all of the 53 AU member states will have representatives on hand for the signing ceremony. "They are represented. But the prime ministers and deputy prime ministers who are sitting here are representing the heads of state at this forum⁷. There is a commitment by 46 member states to take part in the process and for us that is significant enough," she said.

Almost all of what is in the Kampala Declaration is already a part of international law, in documents such as the Geneva Convention and the Declaration of Human Rights. But legal experts say its significance is that it is a concept developed by Africans to solve what is seen as a serious impediment to Africa's development.

U.N. humanitarian⁸ affairs chief John Holmes says the convention also recognizes the responsibilities of armed rebel groups who, in many cases, occupy territory. "That's a point we often make to the Taliban or whoever it may be, even al-Shabab in Somalia - that they may not be accepted as legitimate⁹ interlocutors. But politically, that doesn't stop them from having responsibilities and we need to point those out to them and make sure they are accountable as well before the world's courts at a certain point," he said.

International observers say it is unlikely that the Kampala Declaration will have any immediate¹⁰ practical effect in African countries riven by war.

But Kellenberger says it sends an important message to government's and so-called "non-state actors," that they might one day face the consequences of their actions. "It is an important political and moral signal because it does set responsibilities, and it does also say, among other things, that the states are obliged to prosecute¹¹ criminally individuals who commit serious breaches¹² of international humanitarian law," he said.

To become law, the Kampala Declaration must be ratified¹³ by 15 African Union member states. That could take years. But on a continent that is home to 11 million internally displaced persons, and several million refugees, AU political chief Joiner says she is confident the process will be complete by early next year.

1 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。

2 uprooted   

v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的过去式和过去分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园

参考例句：

• Many people were uprooted from their homes by the flood. 水灾令许多人背井离乡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The hurricane blew with such force that trees were uprooted. 飓风强烈地刮着，树都被连根拔起了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 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。

5 conspicuously   

ad.明显地，惹人注目地

参考例句：

• France remained a conspicuously uneasy country. 法国依然是个明显不太平的国家。
• She figured conspicuously in the public debate on the issue. 她在该问题的公开辩论中很引人注目。

6 interpretation   

n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理

参考例句：

• His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
• Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。

7 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

8 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。

9 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 prosecute   

vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官

参考例句：

• I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
• Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据？

12 breaches   

破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背

参考例句：

• He imposed heavy penalties for breaches of oath or pledges. 他对违反誓言和保证的行为给予严厉的惩罚。
• This renders all breaches of morality before marriage very uncommon. 这样一来，婚前败坏道德的事就少见了。

13 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。