2006年VOA标准英语-Cluster Bomb Treaty Comes Into Force

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
12 November 2006 

A Cluster Bomb Unit,  dropped by Israeli warplanes, sits in southern village of Ouazaiyeh, Lebanon, November 9, 2006

A new international treaty aimed at reducing the deaths and injuries from cluster bombs, landmines¹ and other unexploded ordnance² comes into force Sunday.  Under the treaty, countries must clean up their unexploded munitions³ once a conflict is over.

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Cluster bombs, landmines and other unexploded weapons remain in the ground decades after a conflict has ended. They continue to kill and maim⁴ civilians⁵, indiscriminately, long after a conflict ends. They are also a continuing threat to farmers in former war zones, preventing many from cultivating their fields.

The treaty coming into force requires countries to clean up the unexploded bombs and landmines left over from previous wars. Most of these weapons are found in poor countries, such as Vietnam, Laos and Afghanistan, countries that can least afford the clean up.

Handicap International Victim Assistance Coordinator⁶ Katleen Maes says these weapons have been around for too long.

"The first cluster munitions were used in the Second World War. The first widespread use was in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia in the '60s and '70s," she said. "These cluster munitions still cause damage. Nevertheless, in 2006, cluster munitions have been used in Israel, Lebanon and in Iraq."

A recent study by Handicap International, finds civilians account for 98 percent of those killed and maimed by cluster bombs. It reports there are about 100,000 victims of these weapons worldwide, a third of them children.

Interest in these weapons was renewed during the one-month war in Lebanon this summer. The United Nations estimates Israel dropped about four million sub-munitions on Lebanon. In turn, Hezbollah shot thousands of rockets containing cluster bombs into Israel.

The U.N. Children's Fund says cluster bombs continue to take a heavy toll⁷ on children in Lebanon. Spokesman, Michael Bociurkiw, says five of the 16 people killed by unexploded weapons since the August 14 truce⁸ were children.

"We have become very concerned about children's safety, especially now because it is the harvest season," said Bociurkiw. "Families are going to the fields to harvest their olives and their agricultural produce. So, it is a very real physical threat to children in Lebanon and also it is a huge threat to the economic well being of families."

The issue of cluster bombs is on the agenda of an international arms control review conference in Geneva. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan has called for a freeze on the use of these weapons near populated areas.

In its study, Handicap International argues cluster bombs have no military value. The International Committee of the Red Cross and other humanitarian⁹ organizations are calling for a ban on their use. But, countries, such as the United States, Russia and China are opposed.

Handicap International says about four-billion cluster bombs are stockpiled in 33 producer countries. They include Russia, China, and the United States, which has a billion in stock.

1 landmines   

潜在的冲突； 地雷，投伞水雷( landmine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The treaty bans the use production and trade of landmines. 该条约规定，禁止使用地雷相关产品及贸易。
• One of the weapon's of special concern was landmines. 在引起人们特别关注的武器中就有地雷。

2 ordnance   

n.大炮，军械

参考例句：

• She worked in an ordnance factory during the war.战争期间她在一家兵工厂工作。
• Shoes and clothing for the army were scarce,ordnance supplies and drugs were scarcer.军队很缺鞋和衣服，武器供应和药品就更少了。

3 munitions   

n.军火，弹药；v.供应…军需品

参考例句：

• The army used precision-guided munitions to blow up enemy targets.军队用精确瞄准的枪炮炸掉敌方目标。
• He rose [made a career for himself] by dealing in munitions.他是靠贩卖军火发迹的。

4 maim   

v.使残废，使不能工作，使伤残

参考例句：

• Automobile accidents maim many people each year. 汽车车祸每年使许多人残废。
• These people kill and maim innocent civilians.这些人杀死和残害无辜平民。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

7 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

8 truce   

n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束

参考例句：

• The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。
• She had thought of flying out to breathe the fresh air in an interval of truce.她想跑出去呼吸一下休战期间的新鲜空气。

9 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。