VOA标准英语2008年-After Failed Talks With Rebels Uganda Considers

By Derek Kilner
Nairobi
05 June 2008

In April, the Ugandan government appeared to be on the verge¹ of signing a peace agreement to put an end to the decades-long conflict in the country's north. But after the rebels' enigmatic leader Joseph Kony failed on several occasions to show up and sign the agreement, negotiations² appeared dead and steps were taken making a return to military confrontation³ appear likely. Derek Kilner files this report from VOA's East Africa bureau in Nairobi.
　

Lord's Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony (file photo)

Nearly a month since the Lord's Resistance Army leader skipped a third gathering⁴ to sign the agreement with the Ugandan government in the Southern Sudanese capital, Juba, Uganda's military announced plans for a military operation against the group.

Ugandan military spokesman Paddy Ankunda says the troops for the mission will be provided by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC, where many of the rebel troops have been based in recent years.

"The DRC government has decided⁵ to attack the Lord's Resistance Army because ever since they refused to sign the peace agreement, they have been killing⁶ Congolese. And therefore it has been decided that the DRC will lead this operation," he said.

Ankunda says the operation will begin by the end of June and that the governments of Uganda and Southern Sudan will provide intelligence and "moral support". A spokesman for the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Congo, Jean-Paul Dietrich, told VOA that the mission will offer logistical assistance.

During two years of peace negotiations, Ugandan officials have several times previously⁷ threatened military action. And Ankunda says the government is still open to further talks with Kony.

"There is a door open for the talks and for those who can trace Kony and rediscover the initiative to engage in peace talks they still have an opportunity and the government will support them fully," Ankunda said.

But Ankunda has also said that Kony has shown himself unwilling⁸ to engage in the peace process, a view shared by many observers.

"Kony showed very little evidence of good faith in participating in the negotiations. He was unwilling to meet with the U.N. Special Envoy⁹ to Northern Uganda. He moved away from the site of the talks into a base in CAR. He was even unwilling to meet with members of his own negotiating team. It's very difficult to speculate about Kony's motives¹⁰. I think he's demonstrated to be an unreliable negotiator," said Matt Levinger, a program officer at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C.

Levinger says he has been skeptical¹¹ of a military approach, noting that the Ugandan government has failed in previous attempts to deal with the group by force. And with bases in the DRC and Central African Republic, and a continued presence in Southern Sudan, the LRA has become a thoroughly¹² regional security problem.

The operation announced by Uganda, with cooperation from DRC, Sudan and the U.N., appears to go some distance in providing a regional approach. But Tim Allen of the London School of Economics cautions that even a regional military operation will face challenges.

"I wouldn't underestimate the military capacities of the LRA. After all, they ran rings around the Ugandan army when it went into Southern Sudan. They are a formidable fighting force in that kind of terrain¹⁴. They've always operated in small units and they have a considerable amount of discipline and military capacity. I'm not suggesting that they're going to invade large areas or something like that, but I don't think it will be straightforward¹⁵ to simply take them out, so to speak," he said.

Allen says the LRA used financial support it received during the peace talks to obtain more weapons, and used the lull¹⁶ in fighting to recruit more soldiers. Human Rights Watch accuses the rebels of abducting¹⁷ at least 100 people since February in Southern Sudan, Eastern Congo and the Central African Republic. The LRA is infamous¹⁸ for the forced recruitment of child soldiers, though Allen says research he has conducted in the North indicates that the LRA may in fact have abducted¹⁹ more adults than children.

Additionally, the operation will be led by the DRC military, which has had trouble dealing²⁰ with its own insurgent²¹ groups in the country's east, including Rwandan Hutu rebels and a group led by former General Laurent Nkunda. It is also unclear how well the operation will be able to pursue the LRA in the Central Africa Republic, where it has been increasingly active recently.

While the security threat posed by the LRA has become more regionalized the grievances²² of Uganda's marginalized northern population remain as present as ever.

"The economic growth that has occurred in Uganda since the mid¹³ 1980s which has been quite impressive in African terms has been almost entirely²³ concentrated in the south. So there are clearly very serious issues to deal with at the national level to promote integration²⁴ in the country as a whole," said Allen.

Levinger says the Ugandan government can do more to promote economic and political engagement with the north separate from its approach to the LRA.

"I would be curious to see whether it might be possible for the Ugandan government to create some kind of formal channel for Northerners to express concerns without engaging the LRA. In other words to create a parallel process to what has been tried at Juba, excluding the LRA but seeing if there are other parties in the North that might be talked to," he said.

Indeed Allen emphasizes that other parts of the north, beyond those directly affected²⁵ by the war, have also been neglected. Western governments have been heavily involved in northern Uganda, from facilitating the peace process to funding extensive development projects. But unless there is a fundamental shift in the central government's approach to the North, Allen says, the problems will continue.

"Donors²⁶ who basically are funding so much of the public services in Uganda have to use their influence and financial clout²⁷ to push for some arrangement in which the country becomes a whole in some sense, because the longer it goes on as it is the worse it's going to get and the grievances in northern Uganda will get more serious over time," he said.

For now there is an understandable focus on efforts to finally bring an end to a war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced an estimated two million. But a military solution or peace agreement will still leave challenges for Uganda's north.

1 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

2 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。

3 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

4 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。

5 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。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

8 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

9 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

10 motives   

n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• to impeach sb's motives 怀疑某人的动机
• His motives are unclear. 他的用意不明。

11 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

12 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

13 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

14 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

15 straightforward   

adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的

参考例句：

• A straightforward talk is better than a flowery speech.巧言不如直说。
• I must insist on your giving me a straightforward answer.我一定要你给我一个直截了当的回答。

16 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。

17 abducting   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的现在分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• She was charged with abducting a six-month-old child. 她被控诱拐一个6个月大的孩子。
• At the same time, the rate of abducting foreigners is going down. 同时，发生在外国人身上的绑架案正在下降。

18 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

19 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

20 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

21 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

22 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

24 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

25 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。

26 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 clout   

n.用手猛击；权力，影响力

参考例句：

• The queen may have privilege but she has no real political clout.女王有特权，但无真正的政治影响力。
• He gave the little boy a clout on the head.他在那小男孩的头部打了一下。