环球英语 — 70：Darfur Voices

　　Voice 1
Hello, I’m Marina Santee.
Voice 2
And I’m Joshua Leo. Welcome to Spotlight¹. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Darfur, Sudan. The name means, ‘the land of the Fur’. It is a large dry area in the west of Africa’s largest country. And it is an area of serious conflict. The conflict started there in 2003. It began as unrest about land and ethnic² differences. Some groups claimed the right to the land for farming. A different ethnic group wanted the land for keeping animals. The Sudanese government supported one group against the other. And this led to military attacks on many villages in Darfur. Since then, estimates³ say that over two hundred thousand [200,000] people have died. And many more have fled from their homelands. Today people are still suffering. But the world seems slow to deal with this terrible situation. On today’s Spotlight programme, we hear the opinions of some people who want to see an end to the situation in Darfur. They believe that now is the time for change. Ruby⁴ Jones met some of these people in London:
Voice 3
Hundreds of people have come to London today. Why? Well, the situation in Darfur is now so terrible. And organizers are hoping that their actions will influence the situation. They hope that governments will listen and work together to bring change.
Voice 2
Later Ruby told us why people had come to London that day.
Voice 3
They had come to protest⁵. They wanted more action to end the conflict in Darfur. I talked to some people who came to London to demonstrate⁶. One young girl said:
Voice 4
“If we protest enough then people will know what is happening. And if everyone knows, then they might stop it.”
Voice 3
One young man from Darfur had come to the United Kingdom to escape the conflict. He spoke⁷ about his homeland:
Voice 5
“The country is broken; everyone is dying⁸. There is no justice. They kill children and they kill women and they do anything they want because they are all criminals. People say that there is hope for Darfur. But up until now there has been no hope. There is no justice.”
Voice 3
People from all different religions joined together to protest. Some Jewish⁹ students told me why they were there:
Voice 6
“This is a matter that is very close to our hearts. It is something that we feel strongly about because of the Holocaust¹⁰ - the death of millions of Jews during the Second World War. It just feels like history is repeating itself. And we want to protest against that.”
Voice 1
What is it like for people who live and work in Darfur?
Voice 2
Sara Andrews lives in Darfur. She is working for Tearfund. Tearfund is a Christian¹² aid group. It has workers in many developing countries across the world. Sara is responsible for training health workers. She tells us a story about one of her friendships:
Voice 7
“Today I sat down with a Sudanese woman. She wanted help with her English. She told me a story. One day, some people attacked her when she was walking to work. They beat her and kicked her. She still has problems now because of her injuries. It broke my heart. This woman is my good friend. And I did not know about her suffering. I began to think that similar attacks must have happened to many people in this country. And I thought about the people’s amazing will to survive. They want to succeed even more in their life now because of what they experienced¹³ in the past. I told my friend that she was very brave. She agreed. This story made me cry. But it also gave me hope. And it is often hard to find hope in this land.”
Voice 1
Fatima lives in Al-Salaam¹⁴ camp. It is near the capital town of north Darfur. Al Salaam means “peace”. But for the fifty thousand people who stay at the camp, there is little peace. They live in small shelters made of dry grass. They do not always have enough water. For them it seems as if time has stopped. It will only start again when they can return to their own homes and villages. Fatima is a young mother in the camp. She says:
Voice 8
“The enemy soldiers killed my husband in front of me. They drove a car over him. I have nothing left, but my spirit”.
Voice 2
General Martin Luther Agwai is the commander of a new peace-keeping force. This force is a combined United Nations-African Union project. At the time we recorded this programme, the soldiers were preparing to go to Darfur. If and when they arrive, the General will be responsible for the largest peace-keeping process in the world. He will have twenty thousand [20,000] soldiers and six thousand [6000] police under his control. General Agwai knows that he has a hard job to do. He says:
Voice 9
“I am worried because people expect a lot. They will expect us to do something by tomorrow. But they do not know about the situation. And it has not changed very much at all. And I do not see it changing much even up to the end of this year.”
Voice 2
But the general is a man of hope. He believes that all the different groups in Darfur can come together and sign a peace agreement. But governments around the world need to support him as much as they can. They need to provide his soldiers with equipment and supplies. If they do not, then the general’s job could be long and hard - maybe impossible.
Voice 1
The Bishop¹⁵ of El Obeid is a leader of the Christian church in western Sudan. He wrote this prayer:
Voice 10
“Most powerful God. You promised to hear your people when we pray in faith. You have seen the suffering of our people in Darfur. We pray for you to touch the hearts of people. We pray, Lord¹⁶ God, that the different groups will unite and talk about how peace can happen. So, the terrible crimes of war will stop - and people will not be treated differently because of their tribes¹⁷.
We pray this through the Lord, Jesus Christ¹¹, who is alive today. Amen.
Voice 1
Many voices, one hope - that peace will come to this troubled land. And that the better future people wish for will happen.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 estimates   

估计

参考例句：

• Unofficial estimates put the figure at over two million. 非官方的估计数字为200万以上。
• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

5 protest   

v.反对，抗议；宣称；n.抗议；宣称

参考例句：

• I can't pass the matter by without a protest.我不能对此事视而不见，我要提出抗议。
• We translated his silence as a protest.我们把他的沉默解释为抗议。

6 demonstrate   

vt.论证，证明；示范；显示；vi.示威游行

参考例句：

• Let me demonstrate to you how this machine works.我给你演示一下这台机器的运转情况。
• How can I demonstrate to you that my story is true?我怎样才能向你证明我的话是真实的呢？

7 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。

8 dying   

adj.垂死的，临终的

参考例句：

• He was put in charge of the group by the dying leader.他被临终的领导人任命为集团负责人。
• She was shown into a small room,where there was a dying man.她被领进了一间小屋子，那里有一个垂死的人。

9 Jewish   

adj.犹太人的，犹太民族的

参考例句：

• The coin bears a Jewish symbol.硬币上有犹太标记。
• They were two Jewish kids;I was friendly with both of them.他们是两个犹太小孩；我同他们都很要好。

10 holocaust   

n.大破坏；大屠杀

参考例句：

• The Auschwitz concentration camp always remind the world of the holocaust.奥辛威茨集中营总是让世人想起大屠杀。
• Ahmadinejad is denying the holocaust because he's as brutal as Hitler was.内贾德否认大屠杀，因为他像希特勒一样残忍。

11 Christ   

n.基督，救世主，耶稣

参考例句：

• I regarded him as the Christ.我把他当作救世主。
• Christ preached that we should love each other.基督在布道中说人们应该互爱。

12 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

13 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

14 salaam   

n.额手之礼，问安，敬礼；v.行额手礼

参考例句：

• And the people were so very friendly:full of huge beaming smiles,calling out "hello" and "salaam".这里的人民都很友好，灿然微笑着和我打招呼，说“哈罗”和“萨拉姆”。
• Salaam is a Muslim form of salutation.额手礼是穆斯林的问候方式。

15 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

16 lord   

n.上帝，主；主人，长官；君主，贵族

参考例句：

• I know the Lord will look after him.我知道上帝会眷顾他的。
• How good of the Lord not to level it beyond repair!上帝多么仁慈啊，竟没有让这所房子损毁得不可收拾！

17 tribes   

n.部落( tribe的名词复数 )；（动、植物的）族；（一）帮；大群

参考例句：

• tribes living in remote areas of the Amazonian rainforest 居住在亚马孙河雨林偏远地区的部落
• In Africa the snake is still sacred with many tribes. 非洲许多部落仍认为蛇是不可冒犯的。 来自《简明英汉词典》