VOA标准英语2014--在美的尼日利亚人为被绑架的女孩举行集会

 

Nigerians in US Rally for Kidnapped Girls Back Home 在美的尼日利亚人为被绑架的女孩举行集会

The threat by the Islamist militant¹ group Boko Haram to sell the scores of school girls it says it kidnapped three weeks ago has sparked outrage² around the world and prompted calls for action. 

The United States says it will send a team of experts to Nigeria to help in the search for the more than 250 girls and Britain is offering help as well.  Eight more girls were reported kidnapped this week.

Meanwhile, rallies were held Tuesday in Washington and New York to press for their freedom.

They marched and brandished³ signs in front of the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, calling for action.

Nicole Lee, a human rights lawyer, said just because the kidnapping happened in Nigeria doesn’t mean people shouldn’t care.

“Everybody, no matter what our race or citizenship⁴, needs to really care and understand that if it can happen there, it can happen here. Human trafficking is all over the planet,” said Lee. 

Nigerian Omolola Adele-Oso, the lead organizer of Tuesday's rally, called on her government to do more.

“It’s your responsibility to keep your citizens safe. It’s also the responsibility of the government that everyone should get a fair education and not live in fear,” said Adele-Oso.

In a video released Monday, Boko Haram leader Abubaker Shekau claimed responsibility for the mid-April abduction of several hundred school girls and threatened to sell them.

"Just because I took some little girls in [getting a] Western education, everybody is making noise… I took the girls and I will sell them off," he threatened.

The announcement dismayed relatives and generated widespread outrage.  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday he spoke⁵ to Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and promised help.

“Our embassy in Abuja is prepared to form a coordination⁶ cell to provide expertise⁷ on intelligence and hostage negotiations⁸ and to help facilitate information sharing and victim assistance. President Jonathan was very happy to receive this offer and is ready to move on it immediately,” said Kerry.

Yet some Nigerians have been critical of the government, saying President Jonathan's administration has not done enough to secure the girls' release. 

And for Nigerians living abroad, the frustration⁹ of feeling helpless is tangible¹⁰. At a New York rally, there were more calls for action. Bukola Oreofe, executive director of the Nigeria Democratic Liberty Forum¹¹ was among the participants.

“What [President Jonathan] has to do is summon his security agencies, his armed forces, the intelligence agencies and go after Boko Haram,” said Oreofe.

 

Nigeria just recently became Africa's biggest economy; outpacing South Africa’s. It hoped to highlight the sub-Saharan country's potential investment destination as it prepares to host its first World Economic Forum in a few days. But the event will most likely be overshadowed by the recent bombings and kidnapping incidents by the militant group Boko Haram. Right now what's trending on social media is not the WEF but the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls.

1 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。

2 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

3 brandished   

v.挥舞( brandish的过去式和过去分词 )；炫耀

参考例句：

• "Bang!Bang!"the small boy brandished a phoney pistol and shouted. “砰！砰！”那小男孩挥舞着一支假手枪，口中嚷嚷着。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Swords brandished and banners waved. 刀剑挥舞，旌旗飘扬。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

7 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

8 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。

9 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。

10 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。

11 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。