VOA标准英语2009-North Korea Finds Latest Ally: South Korean

North Korea has experienced chronic¹ food shortages for about two decades, mainly due to the government's political isolation² and mismanagement. Belts in the North have tightened³ even further since South Korea's president stopped sending large amounts of rice.

Kurt Achin | Seoul 26 November 2009

 
South Korean farmers demand resumption of North Korea food aid to ease rice glut⁴ in South

North Korea has experienced chronic food shortages for about two decades, mainly due to the government's political isolation and mismanagement.  Belts in the North have tightened even further since South Korea's president stopped sending large amounts of rice.  Now, South Korean farmers say there is too much rice on the market here, and they find they have a vested interest in rekindling⁵ generosity⁶ toward the North.

Demonstrations⁷ like this one, just a few hundred meters from South Korea's parliament in Seoul, are frequent.

The livelihood⁸ of South Korean rice farmers is one of the country's most sensitive political topics.  The government subsidizes rice production and shields the market from most imports.  Still, farmers make impassioned pleas, and sometimes take drastic action, to demand even more aid.

These days, politics add a new twist to the usual drama.

"We have been crying at the top of our voices, start sending rice to North Korea again!  We should try to consume more rice here at home, but if we can't consume it all, then we must resume North Korean rice aid," said Democratic Party chairman Chung Sye Kyun.

For most of the past 10 years, South Korea annually⁹ shipped nearly half a million tons of rice to impoverished¹⁰ North Korea.

That ended last year, when President Lee Myung-bak adopted a harder policy toward Pyongyang, saying significant aid could only take place if North Korea took real steps to end its nuclear weapons programs.

The problem is the rice shipped north effectively subsidized South Korean farmers; it was taken off the market, shoring up prices, so farmers earned more.

Kim Jin-beum, chairman of the Korean Alliance of Farmers, says now South Korea has too much rice, and prices are down.

"For these two years of the Lee administration, we've piled up two-thirds of a million tons of surplus rice, and we have no way to store it properly," he said. "So that is why if we  can't send it to North Korea, then at least we should send it to poor countries,  so there will be room to store this year's new harvest."

The problem is compounded by changing tastes among South Koreans, who increasingly eat pasta, pizza and sandwiches, instead of the traditional bowl of rice.

It all means that future protests are likely to continue to bang the drum for more rice aid to North Korea.

1 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

2 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

3 tightened   

收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧

参考例句：

• The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke. 系船的绳子突然绷断了。
• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again. 他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。

4 glut   

n.存货过多，供过于求；v.狼吞虎咽

参考例句：

• The glut of coffee led to a sharp drop in prices.咖啡供过于求道致价格急剧下跌。
• There's a glut of agricultural products in Western Europe.西欧的农产品供过于求。

5 rekindling   

v.使再燃( rekindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• There might be a rekindling of the kind of nationalistic fervour of yesteryear. 过去的国家主义狂热可能再次被点燃。 来自互联网
• Bryant and O'Neal on the floor at the same time, rekindling memories both good and bad. 科比和奥尼尔在地板上在同一时间，死灰复燃的回忆有好有坏。 来自互联网

6 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

7 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

8 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

9 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

10 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》