VOA标准英语2011--Afghanistan 10 Years Later

Afghanistan 10 Years Later

Afghans are expressing a mixture of disappointment and uncertainty¹ about their future, as they mark the anniversary of the start of the Afghan war.
The United States launched its military campaign in Afghanistan, shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The mission, hunt down al-Qaida leader Osama bin² Laden³ and topple the Taliban-led government.
While the Taliban were ousted⁴ from power, 10 years later, many Afghans still feel let down by the international effort to rid their country of the Taliban and normalize its institutions.
Sitfatullah Safi is the deputy chief of Afghan government media relations.
"There is a lot of achievement in Afghanistan in the last ten years, but not as much as people expect," said Safi.
Safi says the biggest disappointment is the failure to ensure Afghanistan's security.
"The Afghan people were hoping that international forces in the last ten years should secure their lives, and secure the Afghan borders - especially the east[ern] and south[ern] borders," added Safi. "But unfortunately today, the security situation is a big concern of the Afghan government and Afghan people."
Wahidullah Ghazikhail, an independent Afghan researcher, is blunt about the U.S.-led stabilization⁵ mission.
"They are not successful in this 10-year war in Afghanistan," said Ghazikhail.
Ghazikhail says many Afghans were looking to the United States and its international partners for something similar to what followed World War II. "They helped Europe, especially Germany. And they went there with the Marshall Plan. And people were expecting the rehabilitation⁶, rebuilding the nation, democracy, and reconstruction⁷. But unfortunately we were expecting more," added Ghazikhail.
Among ordinary Afghans, opinions about the decade-long, multi-billion dollar effort are mixed.
Ahmad Yossuf, a construction worker, has a bleak⁸ view of the state of his country. Neither the Taliban nor this government ever gave us anything, he says. It's the poor people, he says, who are the losers.
His fellow laborer⁹, Nesar Ahmad, sees a brighter side. He says that in the past ten years, development programs have been implemented¹⁰, a national army has been formed, bridges and schools have been built - and some degree of democracy has been established. So it is a fact, he says, that some positive changes have taken place.

1 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

2 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

3 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

4 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

5 Stabilization   

稳定化

参考例句：

• The position of barycentre on plane directly impacts the stabilization and manipulation of plane. 飞机重心位置直接影响飞机的稳定和操纵特性。
• With the higher olefins, stabilization of the energetic intermediates occurs more easily. 在较高的烯烃情况下，高能的中间物稳定作用更易出现。

6 rehabilitation   

n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位

参考例句：

• He's booked himself into a rehabilitation clinic.他自己联系了一家康复诊所。
• No one can really make me rehabilitation of injuries.已经没有人可以真正令我的伤康复了。

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

9 laborer   

n.劳动者，劳工

参考例句：

• Her husband had been a farm laborer.她丈夫以前是个农场雇工。
• He worked as a casual laborer and did not earn much.他当临时工，没有赚多少钱。

10 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句