VOA标准英语2009年-Somalia Prime Minister Says Government Wil

By Selah Hennessy
London
30 October 2009

 
Somalian Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke (file photo)
A British couple kidnapped by pirates off the coast of the Seychelles are reportedly being held about 320 kilometers north of the Somali capital Mogadishu.  Speaking in London, Somalia's prime minister said his government will do everything within its means to end piracy¹ off its coast. But analysts³ say much has to change in Somalia before piracy can be halted.

Speaking in London, the prime minister of Somalia's transitional government, Omar Sharmarke, said his government "will do everything it can" to return the British couple to safety.

He said his government will work hard to end piracy, but he said the problem of poverty will first have to be tackled.  "Many of these pirates were once fisherman and will be so again given the chance.  A return to profitable healthy fishing can lead people out of piracy in the central and north regions," he said.

He called for foreign governments to help Somalia tackle poverty by investing in the country.  And he said what he called illegal fishing in Somalia's waters must stop.  "I shall not name names, but suffice to say many countries are fishing illegally in Somalia waters.  We estimate the value of the fish being taken from our waters is hundreds of millions of dollars each year," he said.

According to the London-based International Maritime⁴ Bureau, there was a significant upsurge in piracy in  2008.  Worldwide, the number of pirate attacks increased by 11 percent, and the bureau said the boom came from the Gulf⁵ of Aden, the stretch of the Arab Sea separating Somalia from Yemen.

Of almost 300 pirate attacks the maritime organization recorded for 2008, more than 100 took place on the high seas off Somalia's coast.

Marine⁶ Director of the International Chamber⁷ of Shipping⁸ Peter Hinchcliffe told VOA the number of attacks is increasing.  He says an attack takes place everyday, with two or three ships taken hostage every week.
 
Mohamed Abshir Waldo, a Kenya-based analyst² of Somali origin, believes a solution can be found. "I think a solution to end this piracy, or to reduce it significantly, is possible and it should be done with [the] cooperation of the local community, while at the same time addressing the root causes of the problem," he said.

The European Green Party has also accused European companies of using Somalia's shoreline as a dump site for the disposal of toxic⁹ waste.  The United Nations Environment Program said many inhabitants of towns in northeast Somalia suffered from diseases consistent with radiation sickness following a Tsunami¹⁰ in 2004, that may have stirred up tons of nuclear and toxic waste.

But other analysts say the story is not so complex.

Peter Lehr is a piracy and terrorism specialist at Britain's University of St Andrews.  He says the battle against illegal fishing and toxic waste is no longer what drives piracy. "You find quite a lot of stories where Somali fishermen were harassed¹¹ [by] patrollers, their nets destroyed, their equipment destroyed, their boats rammed¹².  So it started as self-defense, but I think some operators, they realized very quickly that with piracy you can earn much more money than you can as a descent fisherman.  Now-a-days I would not say its connected with illegal fishing any longer, that is just a cheap excuse," he said.

He says in the short term, the most effective way to combat piracy is with military force.

An extensive international fleet of small warships¹³ is currently patrolling the Gulf of Aden.  The U.S.-led coalition¹⁴ known as the Combined Maritime Forces features ships from at least 20 navies.

But he says in the long-run the solution to piracy will not be found at sea, but on land.  "In the longer run you can only curb¹⁵ piracy if you address the root causes on land.  You see, even piracy is a land-driven problem.  It is basically a lack of law and order there.  As soon as you create coast guards and re-establish police forces at the coast, piracy will sooner or later go away," he said.

He says progress is being made in parts of Somalia.  He says a crackdown in the semi-autonomous Puntland region has meant the prisons are full of pirates. "You see already parts of Somalia turning against piracy.  You see also fishing communities forming vigilante groups to oust¹⁶ pirates because fishermen, and there are still descent fishermen there, are caught in the cross-fire between pirates and warships.  So the gulf of Aden may well become a more safer area in the near future," he said.

But he warns that some of Somalia's pirates are shifting their attentions from the Gulf of Aden and instead sailing further out in the Indian Ocean.

According to the International Chamber of Commerce, the number of piracy attacks reported this year will far exceed those for 2008.  As of September 23, 2009, 294 pirate incidents had been reported, with 97 occurring in the Gulf of Aden and 47 off of the remaining coasts of Somalia.

1 piracy   

n.海盗行为，剽窃，著作权侵害

参考例句：

• The government has already adopted effective measures against piracy.政府已采取有效措施惩治盗版行为。
• They made the place a notorious centre of piracy.他们把这地方变成了臭名昭著的海盗中心。

2 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

3 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

4 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

5 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

6 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

7 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

8 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

9 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

10 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

11 harassed   

adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He has complained of being harassed by the police. 他投诉受到警方侵扰。
• harassed mothers with their children 带着孩子的疲惫不堪的母亲们

12 rammed   

v.夯实（土等）( ram的过去式和过去分词 )；猛撞；猛压；反复灌输

参考例句：

• Two passengers were injured when their taxi was rammed from behind by a bus. 公共汽车从后面撞来，出租车上的两位乘客受了伤。
• I rammed down the earth around the newly-planted tree. 我将新栽的树周围的土捣硬。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

14 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。

15 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

16 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。