环球英语 — 220：Peace in Afghanistan

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight¹. I’m Ryan Geertsma.
Voice 2
And I’m Ruby² Jones. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Boxing is one of the most violent sports in the world. Think about it – two people try to hit each other with their closed hands. Could anyone imagine using boxing to encourage peace? And yet one organization has decided³ to do just that! It is called Co–operation for Peace and Unity⁴, or CPAU.
Voice 2
Today’s Spotlight is on CPAU and the ways they are fighting for peace in Afghanistan.
Voice 1
Afghanistan has suffered wars for over twenty–five [25] years. Sometimes foreign powers have invaded⁵ the country. But often the struggles have been civil wars – different groups of Afghan people have fought each other to gain power. From 1996 to 2001, a group called the Taliban ruled Afghanistan.
Voice 2
The Taliban claimed to make laws that kept their religious beliefs. But many of these laws were very extreme – they did not agree with Islamic beliefs. Under the Taliban, boys and girls could not play together. Young girls could not attend school. People could not listen to music or watch television.
Voice 1
There were also many laws to restrict⁶ women. Women could not work or go to school. They had to cover their bodies from head to toe, even their eyes. They could not go out of their homes without a male relative. Life under the Taliban was very hard, especially for women.
Voice 2
The wars affected⁷ Afghan culture and tradition in other ways. For example, it became difficult to solve conflicts in traditional ways. The violent attacks on communities destroyed many legal documents and killed many people. The wars destroyed strong communities and relationships.
Voice 1
Even children learned⁸ violence in schools. Each of the governments in power used education to spread their political ideas. The CPAU website gives an example: “1 gun + 2 guns = 3 guns. This is how our children learned mathematics during the war years.”
Voice 2
Co–operation for Peace and Unity – CPAU – began in October of 1996. It works⁹ in five [5] provinces of Afghanistan: Badakhshan, Ghazni, Wardak, Kabul, and Kunduz . Even under the rule of the Taliban, the people in CPAU wanted peace for their country. Together, they work for peace, social justice, and human rights. They work to build a culture of peace, through training and education programs. It is common for violence to continue even after a peace agreement is made. So CPAU works to teach individuals and local communities about good conflict resolution and lasting¹⁰ peace.
Voice 1
One way that CPAU is building peace in local communities is by re–teaching¹¹ children. CPAU believes that peace education can change the violent culture. The organization designed teaching materials to do that. These materials encourage people to get involved in bringing peace into culture and community. The materials aim to change the children’s ideas and the way children relate to other people. CPAU trains local teachers to go into schools and work with the children.
Voice 2
Another way CPAU has been working for peace is by teaching adults new ways to deal with conflict. CPAU set up Peace Councils¹² in places that had damaged community structures – places where systems of leadership needed rebuilding. These Peace Councils are similar to Afghanistan’s old Shura tradition. Shura is the gathering¹⁴ of the community leaders to solve problems and local conflicts. Traditionally, only the community’s older men came to these meetings. But the CPAU Peace Councils include everyone. This way, all the members of the community have a voice.
Voice 1
CPAU teaches the community leaders listening skills and ways to reach a compromise¹⁵. It also teaches conflict resolution methods. By giving these resources to the people of the community, CPAU hopes to reduce violence and change how people deal with conflict. It believes that the community’s involvement will bring peace and lasting results.
Voice 2
So CPAU tries to combine traditional methods of settling disputes¹⁶ with modern methods of conflict resolution. This mixture has proved to be effective in many villages. For example, the Peace Council¹³ ended a dispute¹⁷ between four [4] villages about a water project. The Council gathered a few people from each village. It then set up a series of meetings to decide the result. In the end, the project continued, but they improved the design, so that it would bring water to all four villages.
Voice 1
When the Taliban lost their power in 2001, a new government was established. In this new government the law states that men and women have equal rights. But it will take time for the culture to change in Afghanistan. CPAU wants women to have more self respect and confidence. This is why the CPAU started classes to teach women boxing. And it wants to teach peaceful conflict resolution at the same time.
Voice 2
So how can a violent sport like boxing help bring peace to Afghanistan? Well, these classes are an example of peace – because they bring women from all parts of Afghanistan together. The women are not divided by differences that have separated them in the past. They exercise and work together peacefully. But boxing is not the only thing that the women do when they are together. The women also discuss ways to end conflicts without violence. By boxing together, they are fighting to end war.
Voice 1
One of the boxers¹⁸ describes her experience this way:
Voice 3
“If you get involved in sport then you stay out of war. In the past there was war between different peoples in Afghanistan, but a sport like boxing brings people together. It is not fighting. It is a competition.”
Voice 1
CPAU thinks training women to box is a good way to affect culture. Kanishka Nawabi is the head of CPAU. He thinks that the women set a good example because they do boxing for sport and for peace, not for violence. He says,
Voice 4
“Afghanistan has been through a very violent conflict and sport was not separated from this process. What we are trying to do is to support and encourage peace for this group, as a model for culture. Yes, these women do boxing, but not for violence.”
 

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 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。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

5 invaded   

v.侵入，侵略( invade的过去式和过去分词 )；涌入；侵袭；侵犯

参考例句：

• Troops invaded on August 9th that year. 军队是在那年的8月9日入侵的。
• The diseased tissue can be easily invaded by these microorganisms. 有病的组织容易被微生物侵袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 restrict   

n./vt.限制，限定，约束

参考例句：

• He feels this new law will restrict his freedom. 他觉得这一新法律会限制他的自由。
• Don't restrict her proper activities.不要拘束她的正当活动。

7 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

8 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

9 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

10 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

11 teaching   

n.教学，执教，任教，讲授；(复数)教诲

参考例句：

• We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
• He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。

12 councils   

n.委员会( council的名词复数 )；（郡、镇等）政务会；（尤指旧时讨论特定步骤的）协商会议；市政（或地方管理）服务机构

参考例句：

• It is one of the most notoriously corrupt city councils. 那是贪污腐败最为臭名昭著的市参议会之一。 来自辞典例句
• Local councils should use their powers to ensure strict observance of laws. 地方政务委员会应当行使权力以保证人们严格遵守法律。 来自辞典例句

13 council   

n.理事会，委员会，议事机构

参考例句：

• The town council passed a law forbidding the distribution of handbills.市议会通过法律，禁止散发传单。
• The city council has declared for improving the public bus system.市议会宣布同意改进公共汽车系统。

14 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

15 compromise   

n.妥协；妥协方案；vt.损害；vi.妥协，让步

参考例句：

• The spokesman made it clear that no compromise was yet in sight.发言人表明，目前还不会妥协。
• The probable outcome of the talks is a compromise.会谈的结果很可能是妥协。

16 disputes   

n.辩论( dispute的名词复数 )；争端；（劳资）纠纷；罢工v.辩论，争论( dispute的第三人称单数 )；争夺；阻止；就…进行辩论

参考例句：

• a legalistic approach to family disputes 死抠法律条文解决家庭纠纷的方法
• a party riven by internal disputes 由于内部分歧而四分五裂的政党

17 dispute   

n.争端，分歧；v.争论，争吵，辩论，辩驳

参考例句：

• They are trying to find a way of settling the dispute.他们正设法寻找解决争端的办法。
• The parties to the dispute should be more polite to each other.争执双方应相互礼貌些。

18 boxers   

n.拳击短裤；（尤指职业）拳击手( boxer的名词复数 )；拳师狗

参考例句：

• The boxers were goaded on by the shrieking crowd. 拳击运动员听见观众的喊叫就来劲儿了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The boxers slugged it out to the finish. 两名拳击手最后决出了胜负。 来自《简明英汉词典》